


Time Lords

by TiffanyF



Category: Doctor Who & Related Fandoms, Sherlock (TV)
Genre: AU, Crossover Pairings, M/M, ooc
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-10
Updated: 2013-06-17
Packaged: 2017-11-24 08:29:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 26
Words: 34,974
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/632439
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TiffanyF/pseuds/TiffanyF
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Set after the Doctor regenerates and the Christmas Invasion, it's time to learn the truth about Sherlock and Mycroft Holmes, deal with Moriarty for good, and set life back on the path it's supposed to be on. Don't own, don't claim, no money is made here.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. London meetings

"Right. So, that's sorted. You head back up, spend Christmas with your mum. I've got to catch up with an old friend. One I haven't had the chance to see in years."

"Doctor, you're not just trying to run off again, are you?" Rose asked.

"Shame on you, Rose Tyler," the Doctor said. "I'll be back some time tomorrow. Don't know when, exactly. Got a lot of catching up to do. Lots to talk about. But I will come back." With a smile and a wave, he spun away and started off into the falling ashy darkness.

Rose looked back towards her mother's apartment and then towards the Doctor's swiftly vanishing form. It wasn't much of a decision. She followed him.  
*********

The Doctor loved London, when he had a chance to just wander it, no matter what the year. If pressed, however, he would admit a special fondness for London with his two favorite people in it. He'd sent the text right after he finished selecting his new attire, and was thrilled when the reply came back to him quickly. Along with an offer for supper, his favorite foods, brought to the meeting. It was divine. The Doctor felt bad for lying to Rose about the state of the Time Lords, but no one knew the truth, and he wasn't going to be the one to tell anyone about one of the biggest scandals in Time Lord history. Well, besides his own flight from the planet, but that was old news.

Trafalgar Square was lovely any time of the year, day, or season, but there was a certain special something about seeing it at night on Christmas. The Doctor spun in circles a few times, taking everything in. It really was lovely.

"Doctor."

He laughed and jumped up next to one of the large black lion statues. "Hullo Sherlock," he grinned. "Nice place you chose for dinner. Where is it?"

Sherlock Holmes handed over a bag that had both steam and delicious smells rising from it. "Oh, perfect," the Doctor moaned. "You do know how to spoil me."

"I try. You do know you were followed, don't you?"

"Rose. My traveling companion. I told her to stay with her family, but she's been acting weird since I regenerated. Which reminds me, how did you know it was me? I look totally different than the last time you saw me, Sherlock. You shouldn't have been able to tell it was me."

"I'll always know you, Doctor," Sherlock said. "Just like you'll always know me."

"Yeah, guess I will." The Doctor pulled one of the pasties out of the bag and unwrapped it. "Oh, heaven. Beef and cheddar. Sherlock, you're going to spoil me."

Sherlock grinned and took out a pasty of his own. He'd made sure to get a selection, though he knew that John would faint if he saw Sherlock willingly eating anything. "You found one again, didn't you?"

"Yeah," the Doctor said softly. "I didn't know there were any left alive. I wanted to destroy it, end the war for good. Rose stopped me. That, and the Dalek said I was like them."

"You're not."

"You weren't there, Sherlock," the Doctor said. He finished his pasty and reached for another one. "You didn't get to see me in that body, feel what I was feeling, hear what I was hearing."

"You forget that I've felt what you felt," Sherlock said. He shifted over and put an arm around the Doctor's shoulders. "The anguish that you still feel."

The Doctor turned his head and pressed a soft kiss to the corner of Sherlock's mouth. "We should get out of here," he said.

"Yes, it wouldn't do to shock the human, now would it?"

"Hey, I'm rather fond of that human, Sherlock," the Doctor said. "How are we going to do this?"

"Allow me," a smooth voice said from the foot of the lion statue.

The Doctor rolled to the edge of the statue's base and looked over the side. "Hullo Mycroft, how long have you been here? Have a pasty?"

The elder Holmes brother smiled. "Thank you, no," he said. "My car is waiting and we can continue this lovely conversation at my flat if you so desire."

"Brilliant!" The Doctor grabbed the bag of pasties and jumped down. "How'd you know we'd be here, Mycroft?"

"Sherlock was kind enough to text me when he heard from you."

"Really? This mean the two of you finally worked past that stupid fight you had, how many years ago was it now? One hundred? Two? Hate to say it, but I've lost track of time. Seems like such a stupid thing for me to say, doesn't it? So much to remember, so many important things, I really need to start using my five-hundred year diary again. It would make things so much easier." He spun around. "Go home, Rose. I will see you tomorrow."

Sherlock snickered and Mycroft raised an amused eyebrow when the young girl stopped dead in her attempts to sneak after then and just stared.

"We haven't worked past it, but have come to an arrangement," Mycroft said. "It does get lonely."

"Yeah," the Doctor agreed. He tucked the pasty bag safely between his feet and took their hands. "Do either of you even remember what the fight was about?"

"I wanted to go back, he didn't," Mycroft said. "I refuse to leave without Sherlock, so we fought and it's put a strain on everything since."

"Go back and be smothered by rules and regulations. It's so dull," Sherlock said. "Earth is far more interesting, even if humans are boring most of the time."

The Doctor smiled. He had to admit that he agreed more with Sherlock than with Mycroft, if only because he'd always hated most of the rules too. "But none of us can go home now, so what's the point of still fighting?" he asked. "I mean, think about it guys, you're here, you have each other. You shouldn't fight all the time. I'm not asking the two of you to be best friends or anything, but stop with the constant fights. You give me headaches, you know. We're still linked, whatever we did all those years ago, even if it's nothing more than a sense of each other."

The car stopped and Mycroft opened the door. "Let us continue this inside," he said. "There are some things that shouldn't be discussed in public."

Sherlock and the Doctor followed behind him, hands entwined. Their relationship was just one reason the brothers had fled Gallifrey. Mycroft had wanted to protect Sherlock and the Doctor from prosecution and they had all ended up on earth. Mycroft and Sherlock decided to stay, even if the names they chose for themselves weren't exactly subtle, and slowly worked out places for themselves. The Doctor visited whenever he could, often when he shouldn't have, but that was half the fun.

"Drinks?"

"You know what would go good with these pasties is a cold coke," the Doctor said with a wide smile. "Yeah, that would be perfect."

Mycroft sighed and detoured into the kitchen. Sherlock took the chance to lean in and kiss the Doctor properly. "Missed you," he murmured against the time lord's lips.

"Missed you too. You sure you don't want to come traveling with me?" the Doctor asked.

"Maybe in a year or two, I could use your help," Sherlock replied. He glanced at his brother. "That could solve all our problems for a time, brother dear."

"Indeed it could. If our friend doesn't mind. He also needs to know about your new companion, Sherlock," Mycroft said. He handed over the two cans of coke he had been carrying. "I anticipated."

"Cheers," the Doctor grinned. "So what's been going on with the two of you then? No one getting suspicious about you, Mycroft?"

"No. The Royal family is most accommodating, and few people realize who I am, or how long I've been in my position," Mycroft said with a small smile. "Those who do ask are told that it's a family name and my great-grandfather was the first to hold the office. They rarely ask twice."

"I imagine not." He pulled another pasty out. "Pizza! Oh, love the pizza ones. These are almost impossible to find these days. Sherlock, you are amazing." He kissed his lover and leaned back to unwrap the most recent pasty. "What about you, Sherlock. What's been happening with you?"

"I have a flat share and a business," Sherlock said. He had ended up with one of the vegetable ones and was nibbling it. "I'm working as a consulting detective."

"He's solving crimes for the Yard," Mycroft said. "Quite well, if he would only pretend to be slightly more human, and a little less excited by homicides."

The Doctor grinned. "Still the same old Sherlock," he said. "So what's this about needing my help?"

"I've managed to attract the attention of an insane genius," Sherlock said. "I'm not ready to regenerate, so I'm having to plan out alternatives to dying. Being able to travel with you would be a big help."

"And Mycroft?"

"I would remain here to pick up the pieces and eliminate all traces of threat to my baby brother," Mycroft said with a smile. "If you would be willing to help us, Doctor, then I would worry less about what Sherlock would do whilst I was working."

"Sure, just send me word and I'll be here," the Doctor said. "We'll travel, Sherlock, just the two of us. See the length of time and space and enjoy some time alone. Think of it, just the two of us traveling, seeing things that we've never seen before."

"Space and time may never be the same," Mycroft said with a sigh.

"Hey, I know what I'm doing, most of the time," the Doctor said. "We'll be fine, Mycroft. You have to let him be himself one of these days."

"I do that every day," Mycroft said. "John is really the only one who can keep him in line, and I've left Sherlock's handling to him."

"John's your companion then, Sherlock?"

"Yes, we were introduced by a mutual acquaintance and get along, for the most part," Sherlock said with a small smirk. "You should come over tonight and meet him."

The Doctor finished his coke and looked over at his lover. "How would he feel about me spending the night in your room?" he asked. "Because I can't be under the same roof as you and not be with you."

"John says he's fine with any sort of relationship that I want to have," Sherlock said. "I haven't tested that by bringing any sort of alien being home, but he shouldn't object to your presence."

"You don't care if he does or not, do you, Sherlock?" Mycroft asked with a small smile. "You want to shock John, test him yet again. The severed body parts in the kitchen aren't enough?"

"He's a strong man," Sherlock said with a smile. "How about it, Doctor? Do you want to come over?"

"I think I'd like that." The Doctor nodded at Mycroft. "I'll make sure to leave a secure method of contact with Sherlock, Mycroft. You'll be able to reach me when you need me."

"That's what we need. Thank you, Doctor. I'll look forward to seeing you again soon."


	2. Baker Street

"So, if you've attracted the attention of some sort of mad genius, how are we getting to your flat then?" the Doctor asked once he and Sherlock were out in the night. The ash had stopped falling, but pieces of the ship still burned overhead.

"It's only about a mile between our homes," Sherlock replied. "We can walk. It'll give us a chance to talk."

"I have missed you, Sherlock," the Doctor said. "And I have to say that this is cutest you've looked since we ran. I love the curls. The curls are just perfect. Are they as soft as they look?"

Sherlock laughed. "I don't know, you'll have to tell me. It was harder this time, setting up a way to work with the Yard. I think they're starting to get suspicious, or as suspicious as they can. I don't have all the protections that Mycroft has in place."

"What did you tell them?"

"Same thing that Mycroft uses, family name handed down. Luckily genius tends to run in families, so no one really questions me, but I have a feeling that's how Moriarty is going to break me, in the end." Sherlock looked up and sighed. "I wondered, briefly, when he appeared if he was one of us. Is it possible that more of us could have survived the Time War? But, in the end, he's just human. A smart, mad human who wants to rule the world from the shadows."

"I thought that was Mycroft," the Doctor smiled. "We'll get you past this, Sherlock. You'll be able to vanish and come back and no one will ask you questions because I know you still have that look that says for everyone to shut up and that's all you need. Tell me more about this John fellow. Is he nice?"

Sherlock smiled. "He's an Army doctor," he said.

"You. You set this up knowing it would happen. You know how I feel about meeting doctors here on earth," the Doctor said. "What am I supposed to tell him when he asks me what sort of doctor I am then? I always get flustered and have trouble answering and people work out that I'm lying to them."

"Tell him you're a PhD studying space and time, like you always do," Sherlock replied. He pressed a kiss to the other man's cheek. He took out his key and unlocked the door to his flat. "It's not a lie, just not the whole truth."

"Sherlock, is that you?"

"This is going to be awkward," the Doctor sighed as he followed Sherlock up the stairs and into the sitting room.

"Sherlock, did you remember to get the milk?" John was saying when the Doctor walked in. "Oh, hello. I didn't realize Sherlock had anyone with him. Client?"

"Old friend," Sherlock said with a small smile. "John Watson, this is the Doctor."

John's brow wrinkled a little. "Doctor Who?" he asked.

"Just the Doctor, I'm afraid. I can't use my real name in public, too many people trying to track me down," the Doctor said. "It's nice to meet you, John. How long have you known Sherlock?"

"Must be a friend of Mycroft's then," John muttered. "Uhm, about a year I think it's been. We met when I came home from the Middle East."

The Doctor looked blank and realized that probably wasn't a good thing. "I'm glad you made it back," he finally said. "Sherlock, where should I put these?"

"How many are left?" Sherlock asked.

"Three, maybe four," the Doctor replied. "I think they're just mixed cheese ones. We ate all the tasty ones while we were out."

"Hungry, John?" Sherlock turned towards his flat-mate. "The Doctor and I were just going to call it a night. Help yourself."

John was so shocked by Sherlock's words that, by the time he could think of something to say, the two men had vanished into Sherlock's bedroom with the door closed very firmly behind. John sighed and decided to head up to his room. It would be quieter, and there were some things he just didn't want to hear.

"You could have warned me there was a war on," the Doctor hissed once they were alone. "I can't keep up with everything happening here, you know. That was awkward."

"Didn't think of it," Sherlock replied. "You handled it with your normal style." He stepped in closer and pushed off the Doctor's tan trench coat. "Did you take your style this incarnation from me?"

"Not consciously," the Doctor grinned. "But I guess we do look a lot alike when we're outside, don't we? I think I like that. It'll be something of you to carry along with me and no one else will know about it, just us."

Sherlock closed the milometers between them and tilted his head up. "I don't know if I can stand for us to go slowly," he murmured.

"Strip," the Doctor said. He pressed a quick kiss to his lover's lips and stepped back to start out of his own clothes. Normally he liked to undress Sherlock, take the time to learn and relearn the body Sherlock was in, but they hadn't seen each other in a while and they both needed quick and hard. They could do slow and romantic in the morning.

"You're thinner than you were," Sherlock commented, watching as the Doctor's body was revealed. He draped his shirt over the back of a chair and smiled. "I hope nothing else has slimmed down."

"I didn't take any measurements, but I don't think so," the Doctor smiled. He let the rest of his clothes drop and climbed onto the bed. "All yours, Sherlock."

Sherlock grinned and, once he was naked as well, joined his lover on the bed. One of his favorite things to do was gather the data on the Doctor's new body. Mainly because it was data collection and that was what Sherlock thrived on, but also because he knew that he could and would drive his lover crazy and end up on his back before too long. He started at the top and slowly ran his long fingers over every inch of skin as he worked to take in his lover's new body. The Doctor tried to lay still, but moaned and arched up when Sherlock's nail caught his nipple. "That's new," Sherlock murmured. "I think I like it."

The Doctor only moaned again when Sherlock leaned down and sucked, nipping softly, and sending sparks of sensation through his body. "I think....I think I like it too," he gasped, tangling his hands in Sherlock's curls. "Oooh, these are soft."

With a sharp nip, one that led to the Doctor's hips arching off the bed completely, Sherlock continued his investigation. "Let me see," he murmured, taking the Doctor's erection in hand. "You've gained in length, but some of the width is gone."

"The things you remember," the Doctor muttered. "You know it's still going to feel good when I slide into your body." He grabbed Sherlock and flipped them so the dark-haired Time Lord was below him. "Where's the lube?"

"Drawer."

"Sherlock, this has expired." The Doctor turned the bottle around in his hands. "It's also drying out. Look, you can see the crystals."

"So, sonic it and get on with it," Sherlock said. His eyes twinkled a little in the dim light. "Or you could just use the sonic on me."

"No, we're not doing that again, Sherlock. Not after last time." The Doctor slid off the bed and dug out his sonic screwdriver. "Neither of us could walk for two days, and Mycroft was intolerable."

Sherlock laughed. "He usually is."

"I think brothers are supposed to be like that," the Doctor said, watching the liquid in the bottle closely. "Okay, that should do it. Might tingle a little, I've never tried this before so I don't know what effect the sonic screwdriver will have on lube."

Sherlock moaned when a long, slick finger slid into him. "It's warm and tingly," he said, his voice dropping a little. "First time this body has been penetrated, Doctor."

"Really?" the Doctor grinned. "So that means I shouldn't do this?"

Both men moaned as the head of the Doctor's erection pushed into Sherlock's body. "Sherlock?" the Doctor gasped.

"Fine. Do it."

"Sure?"

In reply, Sherlock grabbed his lover's hips and pulled, bringing their bodies together tightly. "Your body into mine never causes pain," he panted, holding onto the Doctor's body. "I don't know why, but I love it."

"One more reason to never go home again," the Doctor managed. "They would dissect us, well, if they were still alive. We would scare them."

"Less talking and more moving."

Upstairs, John grabbed his pillow and wrapped it around his head. He hadn't realized that he would be able to hear the headboard slamming against the wall. He really wasn't too sure who this mysterious Doctor was, what he wanted, how he knew Sherlock; but it seemed like he knew what he was doing in the bedroom. His eyes closed when he realized that it could be Sherlock who knew what he was doing and groaned. Now how was he supposed to look his flat-mate in the eye in the morning?  
**********

John was in the sitting room finishing breakfast the next morning when the Doctor appeared in the kitchen, wearing most of his suit from the day before. "Good morning, Doctor."

"John. Good morning. Do you happen to have any bananas around the place? I love a good banana. They go so well with everything, but I especially like them on toast with a little syrup on."

"Sorry, we don't," John replied. "It's hard to keep food in the house because Sherlock uses the kitchen for a lab most of the time. I wouldn't open that if I were you."

The Doctor opened the fridge and stared. "Is it human?" he finally asked.

"Yes."

"Sherlock."

"It's an experiment," Sherlock replied. "I work with crime now, Doctor. I have to understand how humans die. Come, there's a cafe downstairs. I'm sure they'll have bananas. We can feed you there and then talk about what we're doing to do next."

"Sounds good. But you shouldn't leave human remains in where they might be mistaken for food," the Doctor said. "It's dangerous and nasty, really. A bit gross with a hint of morbid, actually. Mycroft knows about this?"

"Mycroft knows about everything," Sherlock sighed.

"Huh. Well John, it was nice to meet you. Hope to see you again sometime. Don't do anything I wouldn't do."

John just blinked at the Doctor, not sure what to say. Sherlock just sighed and led the man out of the sitting room with a fond look that made John feel very uncomfortable.  
**********

"Okay, so, who is he?" John asked later that night when they were alone. Sherlock was moping on the sofa, and it didn't take much to figure out that it was because the mysterious Doctor was gone.

"An old friend."

"You've known him a long time then?"

"Most of my life," Sherlock said. He rolled over towards the back of the sofa and wrapped his dressing gown around him like a blanket. "We grew up together."

"And you're, what, lovers?"

"So much more than that," Sherlock replied softly. "But, if you must, yes, lovers will work for a term. He travels a lot, so I don't know when I'll see him again."

John sighed. "That must be hard."

"He left me a present this time," Sherlock said. He curled up a little tighter on the sofa and sighed. "To be used in an emergency. He'll come and help me."

"What are you talking about?" John asked.

He waited for an answer, but realized that Sherlock had fallen asleep. With a sigh, John went to get a blanket and covered the other man up so he wouldn't freeze during the night. He still had no idea who the Doctor was, or what he had done to Sherlock, and it seemed that he wouldn't be able to get answers any time soon.


	3. Mycroft's Office

"John is worried."

Sherlock turned away from the bookshelf and looked at his brother. "He's always worried about something, Mycroft. You'll have to be a little more specific if you want to hold a conversation about this."

"He's worried that 'your Doctor' did something to you," Mycroft said. "He has sent me no fewer than a hundred texts and fifty emails asking questions about our friend. Dare I ask what happened the last time you saw the Doctor?"

"The same that always happens, only we didn't use the sonic screwdriver for anything." Sherlock flopped into a chair and looked at his brother. "Really, Mycroft, what John has been concerned about is not moping over a lost love, as you seem to agree, but rather worry over what shall happen with Moriarty. You have to agree that is something that should be concerning us both."

"I think of little else when my mind is not occupied with matters of state," Mycroft sighed. "I did tell John that you are fine and to leave you alone, though you might take more care to keep your present from the Doctor hidden. John has seen it."

Sherlock shook his head. "It must have been on the first night because it's been in my jacket pocket ever since. I go nowhere without it. I do wonder why John is so fixated on the Doctor."

"You must admit, Sherlock, that the pair of you are never quiet when you are together," Mycroft said. "There have been times when your bed hitting the wall was enough to awaken me. I would suspect that John heard something the pair of you were doing and is curious. You did tell him your usual lie, after all."

"I hadn't thought of that." Sherlock shifted into a more comfortable sprawl and looked at his brother. "Why are all humans so difficult, Mycroft? All these years and we're no closer to understanding their true natures."

"Aliens are meant to be different," Mycroft said. "That's part of the mystery of the universe. Now, shall we address the main problem? What are we to do with Moriarty? He is secure, of course. After what happened with Irene Adler and my perfectly planned plane plan, I cannot risk him running around. But the Queen and military want this code he claims to have."

"He won't give it to you?"

"My interrogators have been working on him non-stop for the past week and he has yet to break. The only time he comes to life is when I'm in the room."

"Because you are a link to the government, and to me," Sherlock said.

"Exactly."

"You have been feeding him tidbits, I would assume?"

"What we agreed on, yes," Mycroft said. "He, in turn, has been giving me bits of information. Nothing I don't already know, in most cases, but there have been a few helpful hints here and there."

Sherlock nodded. "When do they plan to order his release?"

"Within the week, unless I have the code by then," Mycroft said. "That is the true sticking point. He delights in tormenting me with the code, but will give nothing away. He says that I have to pay for that information."

"And Sherlock is the payment."

The brothers turned and stared at the man who was sitting on the sofa. "Hello again. Have any tea? Love a good cup of tea."

"Doctor." Sherlock shot out of his chair and joined his lover on the sofa. "When did you get here?"

"Just now," the Doctor grinned. "I had to bring Rose home. She's mad at me, something about lying to her about timelines or something. I couldn't really understand her because she really doesn't understand time travel. But that's not important. What is important is that you have the mad genius locked down and now you have a resource to deal with him."

Mycroft handed the Doctor a cup of tea and brought a chair over to join the pair in the corner of his office. "Entering his mind would be dangerous, Doctor. I cannot promise you that he doesn't have the power to enter yours."

"I'll just make sure to shore up all my defenses. I learned that lesson the hard way with Reinette," the Doctor said. "She managed to get into my mind. I still don't understand her, why she was so important to those clockwork men. She was smart, oh she was so very smart, but she was still a lost human doing the best she could for her king and country. Sorry, what was I saying?"

"You'll shore up your mind."

"That's right. Still, might not even need to touch him. It's possible he'll just give me what you're looking for and then you can do what you want with him. You know I hate violence, but I don't give second chances. Not anymore. Not now."

"Do you truly believe you can get me that code and save Sherlock?" Mycroft asked.

"Well, I won't know until I try, but what could it hurt letting me have that chance?" the Doctor grinned. "I'll need an hour or so to get my mind in order, grab a couple of things and then I'll be ready to go."

"Where is the TARDIS?" Mycroft asked.

"Outside. I didn't want to try and materialize in here. The room is pretty small, Mycroft. Plus, I didn't want you picking at her again. She's scared of you."

Sherlock started laughing and leaned against the Doctor. "Is there anything I can do to help you get ready?"

"Yeah, keep your brother occupied until I come back. I'm going to move the TARDIS while I'm thinking, get her to a place where there won't be so many people around to look at her, and then I'll be back."

"We'll be ready to go."  
**********

Mycroft, however, insisted that he had some work to do that did not require Sherlock hanging onto his every word and kicked both the other Time Lords out of his office. The Doctor had just laughed and pulled Sherlock along with him to where the TARDIS was waiting. " She'll be glad to see you again, Sherlock," he said with a smile. "Even if it is just for a short hop, you'll be able to touch her again. Let her remember you."

"Where are you going to put her?"

"The last place Mycroft will look. I know he won't leave his place now, he's too wrapped up in human politics and practices to leave, but I don't want to tempt him. My ship is the last TARDIS around, and I plan to keep her." The Doctor unlocked the door and stepped inside. "Or she plans to keep me and I don't know what I'm talking about. She's got a will of her own most days."

Sherlock touched the wall and smiled at the gentle hum. "It's been so many years since I was last in here."

"You've been missed," the Doctor said. "There we go, just a short hop across London. We can get a taxi back and I'll work on my mind as we travel. You'll have to be quiet, but I know you're thinking about things anyway, so it won't be that much of a trial for you. Do you think Mycroft would object to me feeding his mad genius?"

"Depends on what you want to feed him."

"I've got some taffy that I've been saving for a special occasion. I'll bring it along, along with this and maybe this." The Doctor stuffed everything into his coat pockets and grinned. "Come on then, Sherlock. We've got a mad genius to stop. Then we can go for a swim. I think you'll like the pool, well, if we can find it again."

The Doctor opened the door still talking about the pool and stopped so suddenly that only Sherlock's quick reflexes stopped him from running into his lover. "Rose."

"You left me."

"You wanted to be left," the Doctor replied. He pulled Sherlock out and locked the door behind them. "You left your key inside the TARDIS when you left. That was more a message to me than anything else you could have done."

"Who's this?" Rose asked, eyes focused on Sherlock. "Isn't that that man you left with that one time. You got into a car with him."

The Doctor didn't take the bait. "Go home, Rose. You made your choice. It's over. I've got things to do, important things, and they don't need you along for them." He took Sherlock's hand and started towards the high street. "I wasn't expecting that," he said softly.

"Neither was I. You're going to miss her?"

"Yeah, course I will. I always do, but they can't stay with me forever, not in physical form. But up here, oh, up here I have so many memories of them all." The Doctor paused while Sherlock hailed a taxi. "I never have been able to work out how you do that. It's like they just appear whenever you want them to. You got some sort of weird talent you're not telling me about?"

"Practice," Sherlock smirked. He gave the cabbie Mycroft's office address, the one that was used as a front, and sat back. "What do you need me to do to help you?"

"Physical contact and as much quiet as is possible," the Doctor replied. He curled his fingers into Sherlock's. "I'll be ready when we get there. This mad genius won't know what to make of a madder genius with a box."

Sherlock grinned and closed his eyes to wait.


	4. Underground 1

"Why do you government types always like to hide your hidden rooms so far underground?" the Doctor complained as he followed Mycroft through a series of tunnels and elevators that led to the room where Moriarty was being held. "I mean, don't you ever think that people would be more inclined to talk if they could feel the sun on their faces? The sun makes everyone feel better, well, as long as they're not allergic to it. Did I ever tell you about the aliens I met who were allergic to this sun? They were going to blow it up and replace it with one they could tolerate. No concerns at all about what it would do to the humans on Earth. No, they just wanted a new resort planet to play on."

"Doctor, the rooms are buried because no one likes to think of what the government will do in order to obtain the necessary information to keep them safe," Mycroft said. He found himself missing the last regeneration of the Doctor, the one who didn't talk nearly as much. "He's just through here."

The Doctor strolled into the room with the large window and looked out into the room beyond. There was a single man secured to a metal chair facing the door. "That's Moriarty then?"

"That's him," Sherlock said softly. 

"One way sound, Mycroft?" the Doctor asked.

"Yes."

"All right, brilliant. You two wait here. I promise not to poison him, well, not intentionally. These are taffy I nicked from home and humans don't always have a good reaction to them. The tactile hallucinations are the worst. Blimey, I couldn't move for butterflies one time when Rose got into them." He grinned. "All right, let me in."

Sherlock kissed him softly. "Be careful. You don't know that those taffies won't come back and bite you in the ass."

"That's your job," the Doctor replied. "Try to get in, Sherlock. Both of you. Try to get in." He held still when his head was cradled by two pairs of hands and focused on the defenses he'd put up around his mind. Sherlock got the closest, but even he couldn't get into his lover's mind. "I'll be fine."

"We'll be watching."

The Doctor grinned and stepped through when the door was open. "Hullo."

"Who are you?" Moriarty asked. "I was expecting Mr. Holmes this evening."

"You have a good sense of time," the Doctor replied. "But not a great one. It's not evening yet. It's not even time for tea. I love tea, especially with biscuits and a little bit of cream. I tried banana tea one time, but that didn't work. It was just too intense."

"You're not one of Mycroft's people, are you? Who are you and why are you here?"

"Oh, smart lad." The Doctor emptied a few things out of his pocket onto the table off to the side and then leaned against the edge of it. "Very smart lad. I think I can see why they call you a genius. Yes, an evil genius, but are you more evil or more genius? You won't tell me, of course, because I'm new and you don't trust me. You should trust me, I'm one of the most trusty people on the planet, but I have yet to meet an evil genius, insane or not, who is willing to trust me."

"I am NOT INSANE!" Moriarty yelled, straining against the bonds holding him to the chair. "Who has been telling you that I'm insane? Who has been LYING about me?"

"I never said you're insane, you're not paying attention. I must have hit a tender spot then. Do people often assume you're insane?" the Doctor asked. "Nah, you strike me as more the type to have henchmen and minions all about the place cluttering up the landscape and tripping over each other whenever something needs to happen. And it's so hard to get good henchmen these days. No one seems to know how to hench properly anymore. The last few attempts I saw at it almost had me laughing too hard to do anything else. Plus the state of the minions. Do yours know how to min right? It's not easy, takes lots of practice and all that. I have yet to meet anyone who knows how to ion correctly. Oh, they all try, but no one ever gets it right. It's a laugh though."

Moriarty was staring at him with an expression that either meant he thought that the Doctor was insane and didn't know what to think of it, or he was trying to work out what the Doctor's plan was. The Doctor just grinned. "You'll never be able to guess my plan," he said. "My plan is such a great plany thing that no one, no matter how smart they are, would be able to guess it. But you're welcome to try. Give it your best shot."

"You're here to get the code," Moriarty said.

"Oh, the code," the Doctor grinned. He pushed off the table and started walking around the chair. "The code. Is it the only code in the world? Does it deserve capital letters when we're speaking of it? The Code? I like that. Sounds big and important. So what is, The Code?"

"You know what the code is, or you wouldn't be here. Mycroft would have told you everything before he opened that door," Moriarty said. "He knows what he has to do to get the code from me. He just doesn't want to do it."

"Now, you see, now you see the problem," the Doctor said. "You just told me that you don't know a thing about Mycroft Holmes. That's a problem that is. How can I work with you when you're going to be telling me things like this? No, it just won't work."

"I never told you that."

"Yeah, you did. You said that Mycroft would have told me everything," the Doctor said. He paused and looked down at Moriarty. "Mycroft Holmes never tells anyone everything. It's not on. It's really not, especially for a minor government official like him. For anyone who works for the government to tell everything they know? You really are mad if you think that."

"Stop calling me mad," Moriarty spat.

"Or you'll do what? Bite me? I've been bitten by madder things than you in my time and survived. Well, if I can't call you mad, I certainly can't call you dam, that doesn't make any sense. Nor does adm or amd. What was your name again? Mycroft did tell me that. James, I think he said it was," the Doctor said. "Only you hate James and insist on Jim. I wonder why that is."

"Because it's my name. You still haven't told me yours, and that's not very nice."

The Doctor grinned. "Doctor John Smith at your service," he said with a small bow. "So, can I call you Jimmy then? Jimmy is a nice name, I've known some great men named Jimmy in my time."

"No."

"No?" the Doctor asked, voice rising a little at the end of the word. "Blimey, you're not very nice are you. Well, that shouldn't surprise me. I've only known one nice insane evil genius in my time. Now there was a man who knew how to treat you properly when you were his prisoner. Carpet in the dungeons, even if it was a bitch to clean them up. All that nasty blood getting everywhere. Proper tea service too, if you didn't mind a little acid in your tea. Got killed in the end. Some bloke who said he was the good guy showed up and killed the evil genius. End of an era, I tell you. Still, you haven't guessed my plan. You said what you thought my purpose here was."

Moriarty rolled his eyes. "Apparently you're going to talk me to death. If that's the case, can we get on with it, please? Dying would be better than sitting here listening to you ramble on like this."

"You really are rude, aren't you?" the Doctor said. He sighed and went back to the table. "After I brought you candy too."

"I don't eat candy."

"You don't? Well, I suppose I could just shove it down your throat then." The Doctor turned back with a piece of taffy in his hand. "You see, Jim, you were right. I am here about that code. I know it's unique and I know what it does. I know that you are the one who created it and it's locked away tight inside that head of yours. I also know what you want for it."

"Then give it to me and let me go."

"Give you a human being in exchange for a code?" the Doctor shook his head. "That's got to be the most one-sided deal I have ever heard in my life. I don't care what you have locked away in your brain, it's not worth a human life. Nothing is."

"Then you're as weak as they are. They can't do it either."

"That's because we all know the value placed on a human life. How precious each and every person on this planet is. Even you, at one point, before your brain went wrong and you ended up here." The Doctor took a step closer. "I looked you up. It wasn't easy, even with the databases I had at my disposal, but for the longest while you were normal. Just a man interested in math. Then, one day, it all changed. It has something to do with your father, something he did or was done to him, and this is the result. An insane genius locked deep underneath British soil, soon to be begging for his life. I'm sure your dad would be proud of you."

"Leave him out of this. You have no idea what you're talking about, what he went through. What we all went through."

"Tell me."

"You don't care. You're only trying to trick me. Everyone wants the same thing, and I give it to them. I'm the only one who understands what people really want from life and I find ways to make it happen."

The Doctor started around the chair again. "So that old woman, she wanted to be a pawn in your game and blown up?"

"She was damaged."

"She was unique!" the Doctor shouted. "That's what you're forgetting. People are unique, every single person is different in some way. Some special way that makes them stand out from the crowd and shout 'look at me'. Not everyone does. Some of them are too scared, so they hide in the darkness. And in the darkness, they find people like you."

Before Moriarty could reply, the Doctor had his head pulled back and the piece of taffy in his mouth. "Chew and swallow," the Doctor hissed. "I'd say you need the sugar to keep up your strength. Then we'll have another little talk about that code."


	5. Underground 2

In the control room, Mycroft looked over at Sherlock. "He does talk a lot."

"I think it's relaxing," Sherlock replied. "Maybe I'll tape him before he leaves again and be able to sleep better at night."

"What do you think of his plan?"

"It's mad, but so is he. He's been alone too long with just his ship, and that's enough to drive even the strongest of men crazy," Sherlock said. "You realize what will happen should Moriarty prove to be stronger than the Doctor."

"Yes, it's a shame, but it will be done." Mycroft tapped his umbrella on the floor a couple of times. "What if we were to change the plan a little?"

"How?"

"Send you in there to help. Moriarty is expendable once we have the code, so him finding out the truth wouldn't be problematic, in the long run," Mycroft said. "You could keep his focus on you and allow the Doctor to slip into his mind and find the code."

"Seeing me might also upset Moriarty enough that he locks on me and the code would be buried away." Sherlock looked back into the room. "It's too late to change anything. Look."

The Doctor was standing in front of a very still Moriarty, hands positioned against the man's skull, with his eyes closed. Mycroft sighed. "I do hope he's able to get the code for us. Then we can eliminate Moriarty, take down his network and not have to worry about him attempting to kill you."

"If only life were that easy, brother dear," Sherlock said.  
**********

The Doctor has been to many dark places in his over 900 years of life, but Moriarty's mind is one of the darker places he's seen. It's not really scary, not really frightening, but dark enough that the Doctor knows that the man can never be allowed to walk out of the interrogation room again. The thought makes him sad. He tries to keep life living as much as he can, help people find ways to live better lives, but he does occasionally have to kill. He takes his time and moves carefully through the darkness, studying whatever he finds, filing it away in case it can help Mycroft, until he finally comes up against what looks like a museum display stand. The Doctor can't help the grin that spreads over his face when he sees it. What an elaborate trap. An inexperienced time lord would just run forward and touch the display because it was big and fancy, and Moriarty would have put something precious there. Except the Doctor knew it was a trap and took the time to study it. Moriarty was an interesting man, not many people would place traps throughout their own mind, and the Doctor wondered about that. With a soft sigh, he continued on looking for the code.  
**********

"Our next question remains, what to do about John," Mycroft said softly, watching the Doctor work.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that he's suspicious enough to ask questions, Sherlock. You're going to have to talk to him and convince him that there's nothing wrong."

"I don't understand humans," Sherlock sighed. "Why do they always have to complicate things? Why can't they just leave each other alone on certain topics?"

Mycroft glanced over. "Like you always manage to do?"

"I am not human," Sherlock said. "What do you want me to tell him, Mycroft? The truth?"

"No, of course not. That would be stupid and extremely dangerous. You've managed to keep him from touching you so he still believes you to be human. You just need to explain your relationship with the Doctor a little more. Convince John that you're not hurting."

They fell silent when the door opened and the Doctor joined them. "Blimey that's a dark mind. He's got traps laid all over the place in there," he said. "Got any tea, Mycroft?"

"I'll send for some."

"Are you all right?"

"Yeah. I don't think he got past my shields, the taffy seemed to knock him out completely, which is just as well. I wouldn't have survived had he been awake," the Doctor said. "I did find the code. Oh it's a beautiful thing, this code. Genius. It's a shame what happened to him. That man in there would have been able to do so much for good, had he not fallen so far so fast."

"You have the code?" Mycroft asked.

"Give me a pen and I'll write it out for you, along with everything else I found. I didn't know what would help, what you needed, so I took everything I could. He's too dangerous to live, Mycroft. Even like this. The darkness is spreading off of him in waves and it will touch anyone who comes into contact with him." The Doctor took the notepad and started writing out notes. "You need to kill him. You know how much I hate those words, but you need to do it. Quickly. Today. Now. Make sure he's dead, or he will come back to haunt you when you least expect it. And Sherlock will be the target."


	6. Baker Street 2

Mycroft kept the Doctor with him to venture into Moriarty's mind one last time, and sent Sherlock home to deal with John. Sherlock wasn't sure why Mycroft was so big on him talking with John, except for the mention of all the texts and emails. Mycroft didn't like to be disturbed, so it was highly probable that Mycroft wanted Sherlock to fix things with John so that he wouldn't be disturbed any more. Sherlock had no idea what he was going to say to John, hoping that the human might have an idea of where the conversation would go.

"Sherlock, that you?"

He shut the door behind himself and turned to hang up his coat. "John."

"Where'd you vanish off to?"

"Mycroft needed my help with Moriarty," Sherlock replied. "We just finished up for the day and he sent me home." He flopped down onto the sofa with a sigh. "I think, however, the crisis has been averted."

"What crisis?" John asked.

"More bombs, most likely. Moriarty wasn't in the most talkative of states when I left." Sherlock waved his hand dismissively. "Mycroft will handle it, like he always does."

"Okay, good, so what about you?"

"What about me?"

"Does this mean you're done moping over your lover for a while? Lestrade was here and left a case for you. I told him I didn't know if you would take it or not because you've been out of sorts."

Sherlock rolled up into a sitting position. "I have not been moping over the Doctor," he said. "What you assumed to be moping is actually contemplation over how best to handle Moriarty."

"Then why do you keep saying his name in your sleep?"

"I don't say Moriarty's name in my sleep. That's disgusting and exceptionally wrong. I think I might have to delete that." He closed his eyes and pressed his hands against his temples.

"I meant the Doctor's name and you know it," John said. "Why do you have to be so difficult about this, Sherlock? You told me back when we first met that you didn't have a relationship. That you considered yourself married to your work. Then you show up with a lover that you say you've had for years. What am I supposed to think?"

"John, your memory of that night is flawed. I said I didn't have a girlfriend. I never said I didn't have a boyfriend. I do consider myself married to my work, and the Doctor travels enough that I need to have some sort of protection in place."

The Doctor bounded into the room, holding a plate with some sort of biscuit on it along with a bowl. "Sherlock, you won't believe this," he said with a huge grin. "Mrs. Hudson, that wonder of a landlady made me banana biscuits and custard. Can you imagine? How'd she know?"

"I may have mentioned something to her," Sherlock replied with a smile. "Although I wasn't expecting them to be in the shape of bananas."

"John!" the Doctor exclaimed when he caught sight of the other man. "Nice to see you again. How have you been? What have you been up to? Would you like a biscuit?"

"Not to be rude...."

"Oh, then don't be," the Doctor said. He sat down on the sofa next to Sherlock and picked up one of his biscuits, dunking it in the banana flavored custard. "Any time anyone starts out a sentence with those words, they always end up being rude. I know you've been worried about Sherlock, thinking I did something to him; broke his heart or the like, but I didn't."

"How would you know? You haven't even been here to see him. I know what his dark moods are like, Doctor, and I know that he hasn't been normal since you left last time. Where did you go, anyway?"

"Here and there," the Doctor grinned. "Met some nice folks, got to hear a few fairy tales, saw some interesting events. Sherlock, remind me to tell you the story of the werewolf up in Scotland."

"Interesting indeed," Sherlock smiled. "John, as I was saying, I am married to my work, but I put it all aside when the Doctor comes back. Whenever that is."

John looked between them. "That's another thing that's bothering me. What's his name?"

"I'm sorry?" the Doctor looked up from studying the custard.

"Your name. I haven't heard anyone say your name yet. It's always just 'The Doctor' like that's really your name."

"Why not?"

"Because no one, not even one of Mycroft's spies would have such a stupid name."

"That's good to know, because I'm not one of Mycroft's spies." The Doctor grinned and took a bite of the biscuit in his hand. "I'm not even associated with the government, well, not really. Not in a huge way. Technically. Okay, I guess I am, but never on a regular basis."

Sherlock laughed. "I think it's a good thing you're not a spy, Doctor. With how much you ramble, you might give some sort of secret away. John, what does it matter what his name is? He is the Doctor. That's all there is to it."

"I googled him."

"Oh no, here we go again. All the theories and lies." The Doctor looked down at his custard again. "It would be such a waste to have to use this as a weapon, but I will if I have to."

"Please do not throw custard in the sitting room," Sherlock said. "Mrs. Hudson would be livid and you really do not want to see that." He rested his head against his lover's and sent a thought. *I'm sorry, I should have thought he'd do this. He did it to me when we first met. For a man who can't type, he loves computers*

*I can play it off, I think* "So, John, let me tell you what you found. Or should that be you tell me what you found?" the Doctor paused. "Or do I tell me what I found?"

"I think John should tell us what he found," Sherlock said. "That makes the most sense right now, at any rate."

John only just managed not to roll his eyes, although it was obvious that he was working hard at it. "Most of what I found is obviously lies, things made up by people who don't know what they're talking about," he said. "But there were some pages there that had enough power through the words that they had to be true."

"Oh, did they?" The Doctor dunked another biscuit and looked at John. "These web pages that just had to be true. Did they say that I'm death?"

"Nearly enough, yes."

"Those bloody web pages. I have been trying to have them taken down for years and they keep popping back up," the Doctor sighed. "People making up stories to try and scare the youth of today. Like the world isn't a scary enough place as it is. People have to go and make up stories about innocent people. Sherlock, do you have any milk?"

"We might." Sherlock pushed up and went into the kitchen. "John, those web pages were posted and maintained by people who are very much like Moriarty in their feelings towards the Doctor. Imagine what a web page designed by my arch-enemy would look like."

"I don't think Mycroft would bother with something like that. He'd just turn up," John replied.

"Mycroft?" The Doctor's voice rose at the end of the name. "Mycroft Sherlock's arch-enemy. Oh, that's priceless that is. Sherlock, what have you been telling people now?"

"Nothing that you haven't heard before." He handed the Doctor a glass of milk and sat back down next to him. "In my defense, however, this time it was Mycroft who gave himself that title, not me. I just said he was the most dangerous man John had ever met."

"Yeah, I'll agree with that," the Doctor said. "John, what's the point to all of this? You can see that Sherlock is fine. We took care of Moriarty today and there might even be time for a holiday before Sherlock has to go back to work. What more could you ask for?"

"The truth."

"Oh, the truth. Such a wonderful and dangerous thing is the truth." The Doctor put his plate on the coffee table and leaned back. "The question is, John Watson, how good are you at telling what really is the truth?"

"Very good."

The Doctor grinned and glanced at Sherlock, who nodded. "Then what do you want me to tell you the truth about, John Watson?"

"Who you are."

"We'll make this simple. I am who those web pages say I am."

John choked. "What?"

"Nah, only kidding," the Doctor grinned. "How could I be the bringer of death? That sounds like something from a bad movie or something. Still, it's better to ignore things you see online. There's no police there, nothing to keep people from posting whatever the hell they like about a bloke, and that's hardly fair."

Sherlock chuckled and leaned back against the sofa. "John, he's my lover. What more do you need to know about him?"

"His name, what his job is, where he goes when he's not here, and why he insists on such a stupid title when he's not a doctor of any sort."

"So aggressive. This isn't a war, John Watson. I'm not an enemy that you need to take down. I'm probably one of the best people to have around, well, unless you want to keep your bananas for something." He grabbed his plate and picked up one of the last biscuits. "Always carry a banana with you, that's my motto."

"You don't know anything about what a war is," John said.

"Oh, don't I?"

Sherlock put a hand on his lover's shoulder and squeezed. "John, you really do not want to do this," he said. "Let it go, now."

"No, Sherlock, because I watched a lot of good men die in a stupid war and I won't have it joked about."

"Joked about?" The Doctor looked up and caught John's eye and held it. "No, you're right enough, John Watson, that war is not a joke. People dying is never something to joke about because you never know what they might have become had they not died fighting for something they believed in. But you don't know what a true war is. The petty squabbles here on Earth are nothing compared to what a true war is. I've fought in a war, I've seen my family die and you know what? I'm the one that killed them. I killed them all because the alternative was too horrifying to think about and I knew that I had no other choice in the matter." He stood up and moved towards John. "I felt them all die, every single person who died because of me. That's something that I will have to live with for the rest of time, John Watson. Not murder, genocide. Complete and total elimination of a race, and all for nothing. It was all for nothing."

"Sherlock, pack a bag for a trip." Mycroft stepped into the room and pulled the Doctor in against him tightly. "You and the Doctor are leaving immediately."

Sherlock nodded and paused only long enough to join the hug for a moment, holding his brother and lover tightly. "I'll be right back," he whispered, kissing just below the Doctor's ear.

"Hurry."

"You did what none of us could do, Doctor," Mycroft said softly. He could feel the dampness seeping into his shirt. "You proved that you are stronger than any of us, and you continue to prove it daily. It was not for nothing, don't you ever think that again. They've changed and there is hope now that they will continue to change. That was all because of you."

"I didn't want to do it," the Doctor whispered. "There was no other way. You know what would have happened if I hadn't. I'm a coward, Mycroft. That's all I am now. Just a coward."

"No you're not. I think that working with Moriarty today might have had more of an impact on you than you realize. Have Sherlock check you over once you're under way and make sure that you didn't hit upon a trap by accident. I'll handle things here."

"Thank you."

"I'm ready," Sherlock said, rushing back in with a small bag. "John, I'm going on holiday. Don't know when I'll be back. Tell Lestrade that he'll have to do without me for a while."

"I'll aid him, Sherlock." Mycroft handed over the Doctor and smiled at the pair. "You two behave yourselves and have fun. I'll see you when you get back."

"Until then, Mycroft. I won't stay away too long."

"I'll hold you to that, dear brother. Do not forget to pick up the rest of your biscuits, Doctor."

John stood and watched until he was alone with Mycroft. "Okay, what the hell just happened there?"

"Nothing you need to worry about, John." Mycroft put his umbrella down next to the sofa and stepped forward. "Now, let's see to you, shall we?" He reached out quickly, hands touching John's face, and everything went dark.


	7. TARDIS 1

The Doctor unlocked the TARDIS door and stepped inside, only relaxing when he felt the familiar hum around him. "I'll get you a key, Sherlock," he said.

"Why don't you get us underway and let me take a look at you." Sherlock tucked his bag away where it wouldn't fly out at them if something happened and moved to stand next to his lover. "I agree with Mycroft. I think I need to take a look at you and make sure that Moriarty didn't get into you today."

"Remember what happened the last time we did this?" The Doctor threw the last switch and the TARDIS vanished into the time vortex.

"I do." Sherlock leaned in and kissed his lover, an arm wrapping around his shoulders to keep them steady. "It was wonderful."

"Why don't we go find the pool? That'll keep the mess down."

"Yes, this pool. How long have you had it?" Sherlock asked, following the Doctor into one of the corridors. "I would swear that you didn't have one last time I was on board."

"It fell into the library when I crash landed," the Doctor replied. "I've had to rearrange the books a few times, but the TARDIS keeps switching them back. I think she enjoys it a little too much."

Sherlock laughed. "If I didn't know better, I think I would have to be jealous." He ran a hand along the wall. "But she holds such a special place in my heart too, that I just can't be."

The grinned at each other when the TARDIS gave a loud hum and adjusted the corridor ahead of them. "There we go, there's the pool. I keep losing it."

"How about it beautiful one?" Sherlock asked as he undid his shirt. "Is the water going to be warm for us today?"

"Sweet-talker," the Doctor remarked fondly. He bit his lip in indecision and finally decided to strip as well. But he was determined to undress his lover at least once before he had to drop him back off at home.

"I just don't want to have to deal with the problems that cold water would cause," Sherlock said. "Asking for a favor is only logical, don't you think?" He dove into the pool an surfaced about ten feet away from the edge. "This is wonderful. Thank you, old girl."

The Doctor jumped in, making sure to splash Sherlock. "You Holmes brothers, always trying to get my ship," he said. He pulled Sherlock in against him, the water only just holding them up. "Maybe I'm the one who should be jealous then."

"Never."

"Hmm, never huh?" The Doctor kissed Sherlock again and rested their heads together. "You may as well get it over with, Sherlock. Make sure there's no traps or anything messed up in there. Well, any more than usual. You know what I'm like. You know what to look for."

Sherlock nodded and closed his eyes. He slipped into his lover's mind and felt all the walls and shields drop, launching them both into a field of sensation. He let his own walls drop, joining them together on a far more intimate level than before, both time lords floating gently in one mind.

"Doctor!"

Sherlock sank under the water, wrenched back into his own head so quickly that he blacked out.  
**********

He came back to himself choking and into the middle of an argument.

"What the hell were you trying to do, drown him?" the Doctor was yelling. "You could have killed both of us with that stunt of your and then what would you have done? What are you even doing here?"

"Doctor," Sherlock managed.

"Oh, Sherlock, thank, well, thank whatever deity might be hanging about right now and call it good," the Doctor said. "I thought you had experienced brain trauma the way you were pulled back with both of us so exposed. Then with the water in your lungs." He pulled Sherlock into a tight hug. "I thought I had lost you."

"I'll be fine," Sherlock coughed. "What about you. You had more walls down than I did."

"Headache, but it'll go away when we have tea. Are you sure you don't need anything?"

Sherlock turned his head and looked at the woman who was staring at the pair of them. "The same thing you do, Doctor. Answers. What is she doing here?"

"I don't know, but we're taking her back just as soon as we get dressed," the Doctor said. "Then I'm going to have a firm talk with the TARDIS about allowing stowaways on board. Yes, I know you love her, old girl, but she made her choice. She left us."

"And then I came back," Rose said.

"That's not how it works." The Doctor rubbed his head and winced. "Tea, I think. Nice hot cup of tea and I'll be able to see straight."

Sherlock pushed himself up and out of his lover's arms, looking around for their clothes. "I really do not like the sound of that, Doctor," he said. "It sounds to me like you did take some damage when we were pulled apart." He handed the other time lord his pants. "Here, let me find us a couple of robes and we'll get you your tea."

"Wait a second, who are you?" Rose demanded. "What did you do to him?"

"I am none of your concern, nor do I have to answer any of your stupid, pathetic questions," Sherlock replied, rounding on her. "If you know what is good for you, you will keep your mouth shut until the Doctor is feeling better. Now, I'm sure you have a room somewhere in the TARDIS. Go there and do not come out until we call for you."

"You can't order me around like that."

The look in Sherlock's eyes hardened and Rose took a step back. The Doctor sighed. "Go on, Rose. Go to your room. You're messing with things you don't understand and I'm not going to explain. But Sherlock here will hurt you if you don't listen to him, and I'm not stopping him. Not this time."

"Come on, tea," Sherlock said softly. He touched the wall. "How about it, beautiful? Will you show me the way to the kitchen?"

"You keep this up and she'll want to keep you," the Doctor said with a small wince. Sherlock caught him around the waist and held him upright. "Blimey, I think you're right. I forgot how bad being pulled apart can hurt. This might take more than tea for the both of us."

"We'll start there and see how it helps. Come on."

"I'm sorry, Sherlock. I should have realized that she was going to do something like this, but I didn't think she would be able to get back into the TARDIS without her key."

"It seems we both have problems with our companions," Sherlock said. "Sit, I'll make the tea."

The Doctor slid carefully into a seat and put his head down on the table. "Lights dim," he murmured. He knew that Sherlock's eyes would adjust to the darkness quickly and it made the pounding in his head ease up a little.

"Here, drink," Sherlock whispered. He sat down next to his lover and pulled him in carefully. "Do you need help?"

"I don't think so."

"This is what they were always talking about, isn't it? It's been so many years since this happened, I almost don't remember how to care for such trauma."

"Tea, rest, and rejoining," the Doctor recited as he sipped his tea. "Rose hit you so hard, are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine, don't worry about me. You were more exposed than I was, you took a harder psychic blow," Sherlock said. He sipped his own tea and closed his eyes. "I didn't notice anything on the surface, but I'd barely got started and Moriarty would be sneaky enough to hide his traps in deep. Will you be able to let me back in?"

"Just as soon as we get Rose back to London." The Doctor groaned. "Why hasn't anything gone right recently? It's like this new body is causing trouble. I didn't want to regenerate, and now I want to just to see if things will get better. I'm sick and tired of all the problems."

"Tell me about them," Sherlock murmured. "We have the time while we're waiting. At least I assume the TARDIS is taking us home."

"I should check the controls to make sure. She has a habit of doing her own thing most of the time and she really likes Rose." The Doctor swayed a little. "Or maybe I'll just stay here. Here is good."

"Drink your tea. I'll check the controls. It's been a while, but I think I can remember how to do this."

"Thanks, Sherlock."

"Don't thank me yet. We're still in the time vortex. I can feel it around me. Thank me when I get us back to the right point in time on the right planet."

The Doctor smiled. "My beauty will help you. She doesn't like seeing me hurt. She'll help."  
**********

Sherlock wasn't too surprised when Rose showed up in the control room not long after he started working with the console. "You are supposed to be in your room."

"Yeah, well, I'm not, so I want some answers."

Sherlock ignored her and focused on what he was doing. He hadn't liked Rose since the moment he saw her for the first time and wondered exactly how she wound up traveling with the Doctor. It wasn't hard to deduce that she was in love with the Doctor. Sherlock snorted at the idea that anything could ever come from that. He knew that his lover would never cheat on him, not after everything they had been through.

"Well?"

"Well what?"

"I said I want answers."

"You haven't asked me any questions yet, so I can hardly give you any answers, now can I?"

"I want to know who you are."

"Who I am doesn't matter as you won't be here long enough to take advantage of that information, now will you?"

"You can't just kick me out."

"You would be surprised at what I can do." Sherlock pushed the last lever into place and smiled at the console. "Well, beautiful girl, did that do it? You heard what the Doctor said, and I don't think it'd be a good idea to make him mad right now. The two of you can always talk it over later."

Rose stalked around in front of him. "Who are you talking to?"

"The TARDIS."

"Why?"

"Because she likes me." Sherlock fixed the young girl with a glare that had made even Moriarty take a step back. "She may like you as well, but almost killing her Doctor probably soured things a little. You're going home and you'll be left there."

"I'm not leaving. The Doctor needs me."

"The Doctor is currently trying to recover from a near death migraine that you caused, so I doubt that he needs you right now," Sherlock said. "What he needs is peace and quiet and, I believe we've landed. This had better be the right time and place, old girl. Your Doctor is in no shape to be out on an adventure."

Sherlock grinned when the ship's humming took on a slightly offended tone. It wouldn't have sounded any different to a human companion, but he could tell. He patted the console. "All right, all right, I'm sorry. I just know how you like to travel to places where he's needed. You know what he needs right now, don't you?"

"Why are you talking to the TARDIS?"

"Why wouldn't I?"

"Because it's a ship."

"No, she's alive," Sherlock said. He took Rose's arm and pulled her across the control room to the door. "You're home, back in the correct place and time. Go home and forget about the Doctor."

"I can't."

"Then we'll just have to take care of that, won't we?" Sherlock opened the door and pushed her out, shutting it again tightly. "Take us off, beauty. Back to the time vortex. We can come back later if the Doctor wants to."

"Well done."

"Doctor."

The Doctor made his way carefully into the control room and patted the console fondly. "She does like you, Sherlock. I'm impressed."

"I think Rose is going to be more of an issue than we originally thought," Sherlock said. He wrapped his arms around his lover and took his weight. "Should I contact Mycroft?"

"No, I'll deal with her. I don't want her hurt."

"He could have her watched."

"He has better things to do than watch one kid. She'll cause trouble and we'll deal with it. Right now, I just want to get rid of this headache. The tea helped, but we need to rest and rejoin. We can't do that here."

"Bedroom then. We can deal with the mess later. I don't want to risk another drowning."

"You're right, bedroom it is. Come on, Sherlock. Let's go heal ourselves and then we can go play."

"I always worry when you smile like that." Sherlock kissed his lover softly.

"You should. We have all of time and space to play in, and things will never be boring again."


	8. TARDIS 2

Rose picked herself up and watched as the TARDIS vanished, leaving her behind for the second time, although the first with the new Doctor. She could feel herself vibrating with suppressed rage and wanted to scream. She was all alone. No Doctor, no Mickey, no TARDIS. It was all the fault of the man who had been with the Doctor. Sherlock, he'd been called. Not that a first name would do her any good, no matter how unusual it was.

She jumped when a sleek black car pulled up next to her. "Rose Tyler?"

"Who's asking?"

"A friend of the Doctor's. He asked me to look after you for a while. Do you require a lift home?"

"No thanks, I'm fine. I like walking. See you later then."

In the car, Mycroft sighed. He really had been hoping the young lady would be stupid enough to get into the car with him. Now he would have to handle it the hard way. He did so hate the hard way, but he didn't want to risk her talking to the wrong people. So many problems to solve, problems caused by his own people. Mycroft almost regretted sending Sherlock and the Doctor away. They really could have been of some help. Maybe they would return in time to wrap everything up nicely.  
**********

The joining of two minds was more intimate a connection than making love for time lords. Sherlock and the Doctor floated on a sea of a single mind, slowly repairing the cracks that formed when they were pulled apart so roughly and Sherlock searching for anything to show that Moriarty had been able to enter into the Doctor's mind. Being so opened and exposed meant there were no secrets between them, and they were able to catch up with each other far faster than talking would allow.

When they woke up, they were back in their own minds, the tingle from their joining still cushioning their heads, and their bodies a sweaty, sticky mess. The Doctor grinned. "I think we need a shower."

"In a minute." Sherlock stretched. "I found one spot of darkness hidden deeply within your mind, Doctor. We need to go and examine it to see if it's you or if it's a trap."

"It's probably me. I locked down a lot of memories from the time war, Sherlock. But you're right, let's go see what's going on."

Their foreheads touched again and Sherlock led the way slowly and carefully to the place he had noticed the night before. If it had been the night before. It was very easy to lose track of what was happening, how much time was passing when they were joined together. The Doctor manifested a smaller version of his body on a mental landscape, an easy exercise that they had both been taught when they were younger, and pulled out his glasses. "This is new," he said. "I don't recognize it at all. The time war memories, and my family are much much father down in my mind. I wonder what this is."

Sherlock appeared next to him. "If it is Moriarty, then I would be very wary of trying to open it or see what it is," he said. "The man likes bombs and destroying people, you would have seen that." He walked around the spot a few times. "Do you think it's possible for us to remove it without activating the memories contained inside it?"

"Well yeah, we should be able to do that, but what if it's something I need to remember?" the Doctor asked. "What are we going to do then?"

"What about creating a safe spot within the, no. We can't risk transferring this to the TARDIS. If Moriarty was in your mind, he would have been able to learn about her and he could have set up the trap to harm you both."

"So the only way to get rid of it is to activate it then, isn't it? I want you out of here, Sherlock. This might be a trap for you. He's human, he wouldn't have known what to do and I can take care of contamination without help." The Doctor grinned. "Off you go. Keep an eye on me and I'll be back with you before you know it."

"I wish there was another way to do this."

"You said it yourself, we can't risk the TARDIS and I'm stronger than Moriarty. That much I did see when I was in his mind. This might not even be from him. It's possible that being in contact with him moved some of the memories about the time war or my family and created this. Let me open it and we'll see what happens, yeah?"

"Under protest," Sherlock sighed. He started his withdraw from the Doctor's mind, slowly shutting down the connections between them until he was back inside his own mind. He opened his eyes and sat up, watching his lover closely.

The Doctor's body jerked and Sherlock knew that he'd activated that piece of memory. He watched closely for any signs of problems, trouble, or distress. Sherlock hated that he couldn't be with his lover for this, but knew that it was possible that Moriarty could have made it a trap for him.

"There we go, all sorted," the Doctor said. "It was a time war memory that had migrated. Nothing that I couldn't patch back down."

"In a way, I'm glad." Sherlock pulled the Doctor into a hug and held him tightly. "Let's go and get some more tea and you can tell me where you're taking me."

"Tea, oh that sounds like a grand idea," the Doctor grinned. They both looked around when a phone started ringing. "That your mobile?"

"Mycroft."

"I don't want to know how he managed that one," the Doctor said. He took the phone. "Mycroft? This should be physically impossible, you know."

"I had some adjustments made to Sherlock's phone before he left. Just to be sure, you understand. I have young Rose with me, Doctor, and she had something very interesting to say to me."

"You didn't touch her, did you? So help me, Mycroft, if you so much as laid a hand on her, I'll hurt you."

"Calm yourself, Doctor. Of course we didn't harm her. You left your taffy behind and I must admit that you were quite correct about the butterflies. I find the neon green ones most disturbing," Mycroft said. "No, she is fine and shall be awakening soon from the slight modifications I made to her mind."

"Mycroft, what. Did. You. Do?"

"Did you know that she had been in touch with one of Moriarty's people? A man name Moran. She was to kill Sherlock."

The Doctor groaned. "She damn near managed it too, well, she almost killed us both, but we're fine. Just going to have some tea. Maybe some cake too. I think that cake would be a good idea. Get some sugar into us. What else happened?"

"You were to be her prize for Sherlock's death. To be able to travel with you for the rest of time. I fear, Doctor, that there may be more at stake here than we originally thought," Mycroft said. "I'm going to be investigating this Moran character, but I felt that you should know what I found."

"How would she be able to travel with me for all time?" the Doctor asked. "Humans age even when they're traveling in the TARDIS. You know that I never allow them to stay for more than five years. It isn't fair to them to take them away from their lives forever."

Mycroft sighed. "Moriarty was human, but Moran interests me. I shall keep you informed. In the meantime, would you please keep my brother away from the current time? He's at the center of all of this, somehow, and I'm nervous as to what might happen should he return before it is all sorted."

"Yeah, no problem. There's a few places I can take him," the Doctor said. "Give us a ring when it's safe to come back."

"I will. Thank you, Doctor."

"Take care of Rose."

Sherlock looked over. "So, we have a mystery man behind Moriarty. Or is the man acting on Moriarty's orders?" he asked. "I can see why Mycroft wants me gone. This is a wonderful puzzle."

"Yeah, well, we can cheat a little," the Doctor grinned. "He said to stay away from the current time. But there's nothing to stop us going back ten or twenty years to do some digging in the records as long as you're sure you're nowhere about. Last thing we need is for you to cross your own timeline."

"I like how you think, Doctor."

"Tea, and then we'll have an adventure."


	9. Mycroft's Office 2

Mycroft was used to being able to learn anything he wanted about anyone. In any country in the world. There was a reason his people were paid as well as they were for what they did. But no one could find anything on Moran. It was frustrating. If Mycroft were a human rather than a time lord, he might have hit something. Rose wasn't being any help. He'd searched her mind and found that it had been tampered with, by hypnosis he figured, and was blocked there as well.

He was just about to the point where he was going to risk bringing Sherlock back to the current time when a folder appeared on his desk in a swirl of yellow light. There was a note stuck to the front of it. "Talk to John." Mycroft shook his head at how dramatic the Doctor could be and opened the folder.

Mycroft, the Doctor and I traveled back to London eleven and a half years ago, while I was out of the country on business so as not to risk crossing a time line, and did a little research into this Moran character. He appeared out of nowhere to attend Eton and Oxford prior to joining the military. He served in the Middle East, so it's possible that John knows him. You should go and have a chat, if you didn't damage John too badly when you were adjusting his memories right after I left. Our research also shows that he was sent home owing to some sort of a scandal that made all of the Middle East and India too dangerous for him to remain. He is trained as a sniper and it is possible that he has an illegal firearm with him in country. Lestrade should probably be made aware of this, if only for his own safety.

I apologize for the trouble you've had tracing information on Moran. I had to wipe all evidence of my searches here, and I believe that caused some problems farther down the line. These are copies of everything I did find.

The Doctor and I are going to go and visit New York in the 1600s. We think. The TARDIS has been acting up ever since we left Rose behind and we're not sure where we'll end up. See you when we return.  
Sherlock

Mycroft sighed and started through the information Sherlock had sent. A search in the past, even with information taken and the search erased shouldn't have caused all the information to vanish completely. There was a mystery surrounding Moran, one that Mycroft didn't like. He would have to see what could be done about that.  
**********

"There we go, all sorted." The Doctor stepped back from the console and grinned. "Mycroft got our little package and it should put him on the right track. Now we're free to go and have fun. But why did you tell him we're going to New York in the 1600s? That's a dull place."

"I know, but I don't want him to know what we're really doing."

"Somehow I think he suspects." The Doctor slipped an arm around Sherlock's waist and pulled him in closer. "We haven't seen each other in close to fifty years. Linear time, anyway. It's taking all my self control not to leave the TARDIS here in the time vortex and keep you in bed for a week or two. Think what that would be like, Sherlock. Just the two of us, alone. We could be as loud as we wanted. As kinky as we wanted and no one would be able to say anything to us."

Sherlock studied his lover's face closely. "Is that what you really want?" he finally asked.

"Course it is."

"I want to make sure we're talking about the same thing, because I don't believe that bananas have any place in the bedroom."

"You've never been curious what it would feel like?"

"No, I haven't. But, then again, I'm not as huge a fan of bananas as you are," Sherlock said. "I trust you have some around somewhere."

The Doctor reached into his jacket pocket. "Always take a banana to a party, that's my motto," he grinned handing it over. "What are you going to do to me with it? Jack tried to shoot me, well, shoot the people surrounding us with one once. That was in my last body. He didn't realize I was that good of a pick-pocket."

"I feel a strong urge to never meet this Jack person," Sherlock said.

"Aw, he's an all right guy, as long as you don't mind hearing 'let me shag you' whenever he says hello," the Doctor said. "He really did fancy my last body."

"I don't blame him. That leather jacket and short hair cut made you look very, very sexy," Sherlock said. He kissed his lover softly. "Are we safe in the time vortex?"

"For now, yeah."

"Then why don't we head to the bedroom and I'll see exactly how creative I can get with this banana."


	10. Baker Street 3

John was sitting at the desk working on his computer when the door opened. "Mycroft?"

"Good morning, John. I do hope I'm not interrupting."

"It wouldn't really matter if you were, would it?" John asked. He shut his computer and moved to his chair. "Can I get you anything?"

"Thank you, no. I'm here because Sherlock believes that you may be able to help me with an inquiry into a former military man." Mycroft settled into Sherlock's chair and smiled. "Information has come to light that this man, Sebastian Moran, was involved with Moriarty, and we have limited information on him. Do you recognize the name?"

"Only because of the scandal he caused in India," John said. "Everyone was talking about it, even as far off as we were, because we were all sure that he was going to be tried and sentenced to death."

"Yet he wasn't?"

"He somehow managed to avoid all charges and left the country," John said.

Mycroft gazed off into the distance. He would have to check with his military contacts and find out exactly how a soldier managed to do such a thing. "Do you remember the exact details of what he was doing?"

"Rumor said that he was caught with artifacts that should have been in a museum, or had been in a museum," John said, thinking hard. "He killed a couple of policemen when they came to question him about them, and wasn't arrested for a month or so. I think the military was working to make sure they had a very solid case before they tried him."

"And yet they failed to do so."

"Yeah. It was really weird. I hadn't thought about him in a couple of years. All of this was way before I was shot and sent home. How does he tie in with Moriarty? I thought you and Sherlock managed to wrap that up."

"We did, however, there were some questions that had yet to be answered when Sherlock left on his holiday," Mycroft said. "Moran's name came up in relation to one of those."

"How's Sherlock enjoying his forced holiday?" John asked with a grin. "I can't imagine he's doing too great not being able to do anything but rest."

"I've relaxed that stipulation slightly as I need his help with this," Mycroft replied. "However, I also believe it too dangerous for him to be in London right now, so he'll remain in France until this matter is cleared up."

"Are you going to go find Moran and question him?"

"I'm going to inquire into him, yes. I do thank you for you aid, John. I'll let you know if there's anything else you can do to help. Even if it is going to stop Sherlock from destroying his hotel."

John grinned. "I wouldn't mind seeing France again, Mycroft. Just let me know what else I can do."

Mycroft nodded and left, thinking, not for the first time, that he might have been a little too forceful on John's memory alteration. The man was a little more easy going than he recalled. Mycroft sighed, he might have to do something about that if he could find the time. Moran, however, came first.  
**********

With more information at his disposal, Mycroft made contact with some of his very well placed spies and put out feelers for information on Moran. He was able to obtain an address almost instantly, in Conduit Street, Mayfair, but other information was slower to come in. It was frustrating. He tapped his phone on the desk a few times, thinking, and then finally dialed a number.

"What do you want, Mycroft?"

"A little busy, were you, Sherlock?"

"The Doctor is learning new things about bananas right now, so yes, we're a little busy," Sherlock said. "What do you want?"

"I need you both back here."

"What? Why?"

"To help me deal with Moran. There's something wrong with all of this, Sherlock. It's dangerous and I don't want you in the middle of it, but I think this is an affair that will require all three of us before it's over."

There was a pause. "Mycroft? What's going on?"

"Doctor. I am starting to have doubts that Moran is human."

"You think he's an alien in a human skin? Oh, I hope he's not a Slitheen. I've really had enough of them."

"A what?"

"A family that's been sentenced to death on their home planet of Raxacoricofallapatorius and seem to like popping up here to try and destroy the planet to make money. Don't suppose you can have Moran picked up and taken to a holding cell like you had Moriarty in, could you?"

Mycroft sighed. "I would have to have a very good reason to do so, but I believe I can come up with one. Being linked to Moriarty, that could be reason enough for a friendly chat with him," he said. "But Doctor, use care when you come back with Sherlock. There were, complications, with Moriarty."

"I told you to kill him, Mycroft."

"My superiors felt otherwise. They let him go."

He jerked the phone away from his ear when very loud and creative swearing started to pour through it. If the situation hadn't been so serious, Mycroft would have smiled at hearing his native language again. "Doctor."

"The man is deadly, Mycroft. To you. To me. To Sherlock. Probably even to John and anyone else associated with Sherlock," the Doctor said. "And you just turned him lose. Oh, I can't believe it. You, of all people should have known better. Right, we're on our way back. I'll find us a safe landing point. Where do you want to meet up?"

"St. James's Park after dark," Mycroft said. "Doctor, you should know that we still have Rose in custody. Her mind was tampered with and I feel she's a danger to herself, as well as others. You can take a look when you get back."

"Fine. We'll be there at ten," the Doctor said. "Whenever ten is. Have a car waiting for us, Mycroft. I don't want Sherlock out in the open until this is resolved."

"In that, Doctor, we are in perfect agreement."


	11. London 1

Mycroft was in one of his lesser used offices when he heard the sound of wet shoes on the floor. Frowning, he looked up to find both Sherlock and the Doctor were soaking wet. "Dare I ask what happened?"

"He landed us at the bottom of the lake in St. James's Park," Sherlock said. "The TARDIS's force field doesn't extend that far away from the entrance, so we got wet. I want a shower. Those geese tried to get a little too friendly for my tastes."

"Through there, but do behave yourselves," Mycroft sighed.

"Go on, Sherlock, I'll be there in a minute. I want to talk to Mycroft."

"Could you at least change first, Doctor? You are dripping on my rug."

The Doctor sighed and followed Sherlock into the attached bathroom. "He's upset," he said softly. "What do you think is going on?"

"I have no idea," Sherlock said. "But for Mycroft to be showing his emotions like this, there is something horribly wrong. Can't you feel it, Doctor? There's a faint trace even in here."

"Yeah, you're right. I do feel it. What's more, I've felt it before. Blimey, Sherlock, that's not an alien trace," the Doctor said. He grabbed a towel and rubbed his hair fiercely. "That's a trace that shouldn't be here. It's not possible, but I'm going to find out what the hell it's doing here."

"Doctor."

"What?"

Sherlock smirked. "You might want to put on some clothes first."  
**********

When both the Doctor and Sherlock were clean, dry and dressed, they followed Mycroft to the waiting car and drove off into the night. "Mycroft, let me in, would you?" the Doctor asked softly.

"Why?"

"Because I think you've been touched by someone and you don't even know it." The Doctor shifted closer and ran a finger along Mycroft's cheek. "I'm picking up a psychic scent that I shouldn't be. I want to make sure you're okay."

Mycroft swallowed hard, but nodded and closed his eyes. He felt hands cradling his head and relaxed, lowering his shields to allow the Doctor access to his mind. It was hard for him to be so open with anyone, even his brother's lover, simply because he was so used to keeping things closed off. Mycroft hadn't allowed anyone close to him in years.

"Yeah, it's there. Someone got in, Mycroft," the Doctor said softly. "And I know this person. I know him all too well, and he shouldn't be here. This shouldn't be possible."

"Doctor?"

"Let me check on Rose first, Mycroft. Sherlock can help you, there's nothing planted that I can find, but the two of you know each other better than anyone else." The Doctor sighed. "My poor Rose. If he did anything to harm her, damaged her in any way, then I'll kill him with my bare hands."

Sherlock put a hand on his lover's shoulder and squeezed. "Who do you think it is, Doctor? Who could do something like this?"

"No, I'm not saying a name. Not yet. That's what he wants. That's what'll give him all the power he needs to finish up his grand plan." The Doctor sat back and crossed his arms over his chest. "Oh, he's trying to be clever. He is clever, that's the problem. But I'm more clever than he is now. I know something that he doesn't, and this is going to be his last night alive."  
**********

Sherlock hadn't been inside his brother's head in years. He knew that Mycroft was not happy with the situation, but the elder sat down primly and closed his eyes. "You know what to do, Sherlock," Mycroft said. "Any state secrets you see, kindly keep them secret. You do know how it upsets people, and we have enough problems as it is."

"Mycroft, anything I see now, doing this, I won't retain. I just want to make sure you're healthy and this mystery person the Doctor is ranting about didn't hurt you." Sherlock took his brother's head carefully in his hands and closed his eyes as well. He was concerned about the level of anger he could feel pouring off of his lover, that they had someone in custody who could have snuck past Mycroft's mental shields without him knowing about it, and who could be a threat to everyone around them. Sherlock didn't know what all was happening, but he knew they had to take it one slow step at a time. First check the minds of those they cared about, then confront the mystery man. Or, at least, mystery to them. The Doctor seemed to know exactly who was waiting for them. With a small sigh, Sherlock set about checking his brother's mind for any problems or traps that could have been placed there by their mystery man.  
**********

The Doctor stood in the observation room and just watched Rose for a few minutes. Now that he knew what he was looking for, he could see it. His sweet girl had been mentally raped and not even known it. Her mind had been altered so the only thing she could think of was getting back to the Doctor, staying with him, doing whatever it took to stay at his side. But she would still age. Still die. Rose was still human, no matter what her mind was telling her, and the Doctor felt his hearts clench when he realized that he would have to tell her good-bye. He might not even be able to heal her completely and might have to wipe her mind of everything they had done together. He wondered if this was what Moran wanted to have happen. To try and hurt the Doctor by attacking his companion. The Doctor knew that he was well known for liking to have companions with him, and more than a fair share of them did come from Earth. The Doctor liked humans, liked the hope and dreams they carried with them no matter what they were doing. He sighed and stepped into the room. "Rose."

"Doctor. Oh, thank god you're here. It's been so horrible. There's a man that keeps coming to see me and I don't know who he is or what he wants, but he says he's a friend of yours and I think he's touched me a few times, but I can't remember."

"Hush, Rose, it's okay. That man, he's taller than me, frowns all the time, wears stuff suits? Yeah, that's what I thought. That's just Mycroft. He's an old friend and, if he did touch you, it was just your head. Man doesn't like women, not that way."

"What?"

"He's gay, Rose," the Doctor said. "Still, I'm here now. Let's have a look at you, all right? Can you sit down?"

"Are you going into my head?" Rose asked.

"Yeah. Sherlock and I are checked over everyone to make sure there's no problems from an alien spore that dropped to Earth a couple of weeks back. I was just out checking your mum, she's fine. Wants you to come for tea and supper before we head back out again," the Doctor said. He put his hands into position and slipped into her mind while she was distracted. Luckily he was very good at multitasking. "Jackie said she'd make a cake too. I've never known her to bake before, so that sounded like it might be worth checking out. What do you say?"

"Mum can't bake. She just hides the burned bits under frosting," Rose said. "Where did these spore things come from?"

"An asteroid that passed too close to the Earth, must have gone through a space cloud that had been seeded with the things. Just goes to show, you never know what the aliens are going to do to try and hurt you humans," the Doctor said. "Relax for me, Rose. Let me in. You know I'm not going to hurt you. Just want to make sure you're healthy."

"Where is he, that Sherlock guy? He's really rude."

The Doctor smiled. "Nah, he's not rude. He just doesn't like people. He's a genius and that makes him sensitive to things that others can't handle. Like people. Yeah, he comes off as rude, but he's not. I think if you gave him a chance, you'd really like him." The Doctor paused for a moment. "Too bad that can't happen."

"Why can't it happen?" Rose asked.

"Because you've been changed, Rose." The Doctor stepped away from her and sat down in one of the other chairs. "Changed and you didn't even know it, did you? I'm so, so sorry it came to this. I don't even know how it happened."

"Doctor, what are you talking about?"

"I can't tell you. You just have to trust me. Wait here, I'll take care of everything. Then I'll be back to let you out. Okay?"

"No, I want to come with you."

"You can't. No one can. This is something I have to face alone."

The Doctor stood and swept out of the room, locking the door behind him and hurrying to find the Holmes brothers. He should have realized there was something wrong with Rose, tried to think back to when the attack on her could have happened, and couldn't. There had been so many times that she was out of his sight, so many chances for her to have been grabbed that he couldn't say how long the instructions had been burned into her brain. "Sherlock?"

"There's a link, but it's dormant at the moment," Sherlock said. "I can close it off if I have to, but it'll take all of my focus to keep Mycroft safe. Who are we dealing with, Doctor? I've never seen anything like this before. Not even back home."

"I did, at the end of the Time War," the Doctor said. "You stay here with Mycroft and keep him safe. He's got secrets in there that no one needs to have access to." He dug in his pocket and pulled out a knife. "I hate weapons. Ever since I destroyed our people, I vowed never again to hold a weapon in my hand. But it's the only way to kill him. The only thing I can do. Blood on my hands again, Sherlock. It never ends. Death always finds me in the end."

Sherlock pulled his lover into a hug, mindful of the knife, and pressed their foreheads together. "You do what needs to be done," he murmured. "In that you are the most powerful man I know. You mourn the loss of those who die, and that makes your heart bigger than anyone else. Doctor, don't let Moran, or whatever his name is, get to you. This is what he wants. For you to be doubting yourself. When you go in there, you cannot have an iota of doubt that you are doing the right thing. That's how he'll leech onto your mind."

"You're right, Sherlock. I know you're right. I'll do this for you, Mycroft, Rose, and every person on this planet. I'll keep them safe. But we have another battle to fight after this. Moran will have driven Moriarty over the edge, and he'll be playing his end game as well." The Doctor pulled back and looked into his lover's eyes. "Call John and anyone else you care about. Warn them. Get them somewhere safe. Then we'll deal with Moriarty."

Sherlock nodded. "I'll be right here with Mycroft, Doctor. Call me if you need me."

"Keep Mycroft's mind safe," the Doctor said.

"I will."

The Doctor nodded, kissed his lover as deeply as he could and then stepped back. He put the knife in his trouser's pocket and squared his shoulders. "No matter what happens in there, no matter what you hear, don't come in." He leaned in and pressed his head up against Sherlock's. *Not unless I call for a banana. Then come help me.*

Sherlock nodded and stepped back. "I'll keep Mycroft safe. We'll be here."

The Doctor stepped up to the door, took a deep breath and went inside the room. "Well now, Rassilon, how nice to see you again. Let me tell you what happens to people who mess with the ones I love."


	12. Underground 3

Moran looked puzzled. "Who are you and what are you talking about?" he asked. "I was taken from my home against my will and plan to talk to the media about this once I'm free."

"It's not going to do any good, you know," the Doctor said. "I can smell your psychic scent from here, it's rolling off you in waves. Not a bad plan, you know, coming to Earth to hide as a human. There's lots of people here, it's easy enough to get lost, but you just couldn't leave well enough alone, could you? Nah, not the creator of the Time Lords. You just had to start meddling, didn't you?"

"I suppose I shouldn't be surprise that you're the one who found me," Rassilon said, dropping the act. "Not after you ruined all my plans during the time war."

"I prefer to think of it as saving the universe from an insane man," the Doctor said. "You knew what the Final Sanction would do to everyone other than the Time Lords. But you didn't tell anyone about it, did you? No, you were going to sacrifice all of creation without a second thought, just to save one race."

"The race that you killed, Doctor. You killed your own people."

"Yes, I did. That was one of the hardest choices I've ever had to make, because they were my people. My family. My friends. But better one race than the universe, Rassilon." The Doctor leaned against a wall near the door and looked at the other time lord. "I'm curious how you managed to escape the Time Lock."

"I'm sure you are."

"Okay, don't tell me. Insane bad guys just don't know the rules these days. It's depressing. I was all set for you to talk about how clever you are, how you escaped, your plans to take over the world using Moriarty." The Doctor grinned. "Now he was an insane genius. I wonder how much of the evil part was his doing and how much of it was yours."

"You know you can get all the answers, don't you, Doctor?" Rassilon smiled. "You just have to come over here and touch me."

"Oh, you'd like that, wouldn't you?" The Doctor grinned. "I'm the only one who stands in your way now. The only one who knows all of your dark and dirty secrets. You made a mistake, Rassilon, when you touched Rose and Mycroft. They're under my protection, and I take that very seriously."

"Yes, Mycroft. Tell me, Doctor. How is it that no one on Gallifrey knew that there were two time lords living here as humans with all of their powers in tact," Rassilon said. "How long have they been here? Why are they here?"

"So now you think that you're the one back in power?" the Doctor asked. "Mycroft and Sherlock are here for their own reasons. The Council knew they were here, they just never pressed the issue. Mycroft and Sherlock have done no harm so they were left alone, and that's all you need to know." The Doctor took a banana out of his jacket pocket and peeled it slowly. "I don't need to look into your mind, Rassilon, to know why you're here and what you're doing. It's all revenge. I ruined your plan, your grand scheme for the time lords and you want to get back at me. That's all you're doing here. Now, by rights, I should send you back to the time lock and make sure that you can never escape again. But I just don't think that's going to do it this time. If you escaped once, then you'll be able to escape again and I really don't think the universe needs that sort of a threat."

"What's that thing?"

"This? It's a banana. Banana's are good. Always take a banana to a party, Rassilon. Well, except you aren't going to be going to any more parties, so it doesn't really matter. Want to try a bite?"

"You've probably injected it with poison or something that will hurt me."

"I'd never do that. Shoot you through the head for hurting Rose, yes, but I'd never poison a banana." The Doctor took a large bite and chewed. "Tasty. Just the right season for them. You sure? You look hungry."

"You're not going to fool me that easily, Doctor."

"Suit yourself, I just thought you might be hungry." The Doctor finished the banana and dropped the peel on a table near the door. "So, you're here for revenge. Big evil plans and all of that, and you've been stopped again, but not by me. That really must bother you. You had an escape plan though. Two of them, if I know you. I think I've got a way to stop you leaving before this is all over with. I wouldn't want you to miss the grand finale of the plan."

Rassilon looked at him for a long moment. "You're still so young, Doctor, you don't know what you're up against. I'm the creator of the time lords. I've lived for more years than you can ever imagine."

"Linear years or wibbly-wobbly years?"

"What are you babbling about now?"

"Well, it's how I explain it to humans. Time is not a line. From a non-linear non-subjective viewpoint it's more like a big ball of wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey stuff."

"You're mad."

"Yep, that's me. Just a mad man with a box," the Doctor grinned. He took out the knife and put it down on the table next to him. "See, Rassilon, one advantage I have over every single one of you stuffy old time lords is that I travel. I'm curious. I'm not afraid of danger so I go places that others wouldn't, and learn things that no one else knows. I don't like weapons. I don't like using them, but to stop a threat against people I care about, I'll do it. Because no one else will."


	13. Underground 4

Sherlock could feel the man they had in custody battering against his mind, against Mycroft's mind, trying to find a way in. It bothered him to not be able to be in with his lover, helping the Doctor face whoever had been posing as Moran. Sherlock had a feeling that there was something that the Doctor wasn't telling him, something about the Time War that was being kept back, for whatever reason. Whatever reason the Doctor had for holding back information had to be a good reason, although part of Sherlock knew that it was possible that the Doctor had just forgotten that he never mentioned it. All Sherlock was going to be able to do was hold on, keep Mycroft safe, and hope that there wasn't a link to Rose as well. There was no way he would be able to shield both his brother and the companion. It was all down to the Doctor.  
***********

"You think it'll be that easy to stop me, Doctor? You don't even know what my full plan is yet," Rassilon said with a smile.

"That's true, I don't, but I don't really need to. As long as I'm sure you're not going anywhere anytime soon, then I can spend as long as I want to cleaning up your mess." The Doctor started to dig in his pockets, pulling out paint tubes, brushes, cleaner, three books, a few gem stones and another banana. "I've done a lot of research since the end of the Time War, and I've learned more than you could imagine. The things I've done, the places I've gone. It hasn't always been fun, people have died no matter what I did, but I've done my best to make the universe a better place."

"What's all that for? How did you fit it all in your pockets?"

"Time Lord pockets, they're bigger on the inside," the Doctor smiled. "The paint is to draw on the floor, walls, ceiling and door with. The brushes are for the paint, the cleaner is so I don't make a mess. The books, well, those were due back at the library two hundred years in the future, I really should take those back, the stones are pretty and the banana is for when I get hungry." He grinned, looking rather mad. "Wouldn't you just love to know what I'm doing."

"Not really. It seems to me that your time away from home addled your brain."

"That's what you'd like to think, isn't it?" The Doctor decided the table would make a good enough pallet for the pain and started debating color. "But then again, I really am a bit of a mad man, just a mad man with a box. That's what my friends say most of the time. What color should I make the door? I'm thinking red would be good. A nice bright vivid red that doesn't in any way look like blood."

Rassilon sighed. "Doctor, I have no idea what you're talking about."

"You wouldn't, would you? Because you never left home. You stayed and plotted and butchered and ruled and created and destroyed, but you never once traveled." The Doctor started to paint a series of symbols on the door, taking care with each one. "Which means you've let your brain go to rot, Rassilon. Maybe that's why you came up with such a stupid idea for ending the Time War. Destroy the universe and all life just to save the time lords? Beings of light, we would have become. Who wants to live as light? You'd never be able to eat a banana."

"I'm wondering how our people gave birth to something like you."

"Well, there's a few black sheep in any family." The Doctor turned and grinned. "I could paint you. Make you match what I'm doing here."

"You'll do no such thing. Besides, didn't you say you didn't want to touch me?"

"I did, yeah. I suppose even contact through a brush would be enough to lead you into my mind, given how easily you slipped into Rose's." The Doctor put down the brush with the red paint on it and picked up a clean one. "I will never forgive you for what you've done to her."

"How is what I did any worse than what you've done to her?" Rassilon asked.

"I never raped her mind," the Doctor said in a low, cold tone. There was tension curled around ever word. "I gave her a chance to see the universe, to live outside of this backwater world and expand her horizons. I'm not responsible for her feelings, Rassilon. I'm not the one who took whatever love she felt for me and turned it into a weapon. Don't you dare talk to me about using others for gain."

"It seems I struck a nerve. I expected the man who killed his own people to be more violent. To have more anger in his soul."

The Doctor put down the brush he had been using on the walls - green paint - and picked up a third. "I didn't want to kill them. My family, my blood family was there. My children were there. Friends, teachers, ones I love, they were all there," he said. "We live such long lives, have so many connections with people, and I lost them all because you decided that destroying the universe was an acceptable solution to war. And I'd do it again. I almost did. The daleks survived the war, Rassilon. They're still out there, but because you forced my hand, there's only me left to deal with them."

"So you killed your people for nothing?"

"I saved the universe. I think they'd see that as a fair bargain." The Doctor pulled a chair over and started to paint with yellow on the ceiling. "Hope you don't mind this dripping in your hair. It's not easy to work up here."

"You never gave our people a chance to decide what they wanted, Doctor. Their choice was taken away from them by you."

"Yes, it was. But after you killed one of the council for disagreeing with you, there was no other choice. What did you do to get them all to agree to such a thing? Did you lie to them? There's no way the council that I remember would have agreed to kill everything just to save themselves."

"Maybe you didn't know your people as well as you thought you did," Rassilon said. "Now, when are you doing to tell me exactly what it is you're painting?"

The Doctor grinned as he put the last stroke through the brown painted symbols on the floor. "That's step one," he said. "This is an old trick I came across, oh centuries ago now, here on Earth. I don't know that it'll work, but it's the best shot I have, especially when combined with the other parts of the plan."

"This is a plan?"

"No, this is a banana. These are gems." The Doctor leaned against the table and took a bite of the banana. "The plan is still in the works, you see. But oh, is it a great plan. I like a good plan, even if I do normally think of them in stages as I'm working and often have to rework the plan in the middle to suit the consequences of the original plan."

"Doctor, I think you should just let me go."

The Doctor laughed. "You honestly thought you were in my mind?" he asked. "Is that what your senses are telling you? That you have control of me? No one controls me, Rassilon. I have help on my side, and she's wonderful."

"Rose is too weak to help you."

"Sorry, did I say Rose? She's a gem, but she's not who I was talking to. No, I meant my TARDIS." The Doctor dropped the peel on the table and started to dig in his pockets again. "My old girl is rather fond of me, so she always keeps an eye on me whenever I'm out."

"You are mad, there's no way a TARDIS of any generation can manage to shield the mind of a time lord."

"Mine does. She's learned while we were traveling too. And water, Rassilon, is a good magnifier. Everyone knows that, and my girl is sitting at the bottom of a lake. One of the biggest magnifiers you can get in this city." The Doctor started to place gem stones around the room. "She's such a clever TARDIS. You lot had her in the museum, but I saw her for what she really is. A wonderful, beautiful girl who wants to be among the stars as much as I did. So we went together, and we've been together ever since."

"That TARDIS is a broken down old wreck who should be scrapped," Rassilon said.

"Never. No one, not even you, will ever touch my TARDIS."

"How are you going to stop me?"

The Doctor took out his sonic screwdriver. "Like this."

Rassilon screamed when the gems around the room came to life, vibrating at different wave lengths, isolating him from the minds around him. "What did you do?"

"I told you, it's old magic," the Doctor said. "The crystals combined with the paint are enough to block off all psychic links beyond this room. You can't go to another mind now, Rassilon. You're trapped in here, with me, in this form."

"I can still get into your head."

"No you can't. I'm protected. Now, the interesting thing is, this knife." The Doctor picked up the knife and held it up. "Recognize it?"

"You took it."

"Yes, I did. Before I ran the first time. It's been tucked safely away in my TARDIS for all these centuries. The one weapon you fear." The Doctor stepped closer. "Like I said, normally I'd just send you back to the Time Lock and leave you there to rot, but you hurt my friends. No one hurts my friends."

Rassilon leaned back. "Do you want me to beg, Doctor?"

"No. You created the Time Lords. You had some dignity at one point, I won't take that away from you. But all you've proven with your stunts here on Earth is that you're willing to kill innocent people to get your way, you haven't changed a bit." The Doctor stepped forward and plunged the knife into the right heart. "This is the only solution left to me, Rassilon. Another time lord dead by my hands." He stabbed the left heart and left the knife buried for a moment. The only way to be sure that the other time lord was dead was to remove the hearts completely, but the Doctor needed a moment to pay his respects to a man who had once been a legend.  
**********

"It's over."

"Doctor, you're covered in blood."

"None of it's mine," the Doctor said. "You got a shower around this place, Mycroft?"

"Of course. What of Moran?"

"Burn the remains. He's dead. He was a Time Lord, just like us."

Sherlock and Mycroft stared at each other. "How?"

"I don't know. He was locked away at the end of the Time War, I thought he was dead. But he came back. How many did he bring out with him, that's the real question?"

"What did you do?"

"Gutted him completely," the Doctor said. "Burn him, Mycroft. Let him have that decency. Do not let me find out that your mysterious superiors have stopped you from doing this."

"I'll take care of it," Mycroft said. "Sherlock, you know where the showers are. Why don't you go with the Doctor and help him get cleaned off? Then we can see to Rose?"

"I'll take her home," the Doctor said. "Sherlock, you need to get home and talk to John. Let him know that there's danger coming, real danger that might be fatal. Call your friends, warn them. Moriarty is still loose, and now the man who was controlling him is dead."

"He'll be worse than ever."

"And more deadly."


	14. Rose's flat

"Doctor, after you're done with Rose, what are you going to do?" Mycroft asked as the remains were packed into a body bag.

"I'll to go Baker Street for a night or two," the Doctor replied. "I still cannot believe you let Moriarty go like this, Mycroft. I saw the man's mind, he's insane. He's a danger to not only us, but everyone in this city. Maybe everyone on this planet, and you just turned him loose because some stupid superiors told you to. How hard would it have been to have him killed?"

"Very much so, I'm afraid," Mycroft sighed. "They wouldn't even allow me to have him tracked once he was freed from our care. I don't know where he is or what he has been doing. I can check with my people, see if they can find him on the CCTV network to at least give us a starting place."

"He's too smart to allow himself to show up on those. He'll be hidden, disguised, very likely showing symptoms of paranoia and possible decline into the dark." The Doctor pulled on his coat. "He's coming, Mycroft. He's coming and we might not be able to stop him without more people dead." He opened the door. "I'm taking Rose home and I'm going to have to wipe her mind. One of the few friends I thought I'd be able to have around for a while, and I have to take it all away. God, her mother is going to kill me."

"Her mother?"

"Rose is nineteen, Mycroft. She's been my responsibility since she joined me and her mother already hates me for taking her away. I don't know what's going to happen when I try to explain why I have to erase all memory of me." The Doctor sighed. "I'll have to do it to Jackie too. Blimey, this is going to be an unpleasant night."  
**********

The Doctor stayed silent on the trip to Rose's flat, no matter what question she asked him. He was torn. In his own way, he loved Rose deeply, and if it wasn't for his relationship with Sherlock, he thought they might have had a chance. She was definitely one of the better and braver companions he'd had on his travels, taking everything in stride and soaking up the new cultures and places they visited. It hardly seemed fair to have to take all of that away from her, but he also knew that Rassilon had changed her so dramatically that it was very likely going to be the only option he had. He wasn't sure how he was going to handle losing Rose. Both he and the TARDIS were happier when she was around, she brought such life back to them. There was no way to avoid the fact that the Doctor and the TARDIS were both getting on in years. Another few centuries and they might be forced to slow down a little on their travels. No one lived forever, and the Doctor already had a plan for himself and his gal when they reached the end of their time. Maybe Sherlock would want to go with them, they weren't that far off in age. He'd have to ask his lover about that.

When they got to the flat, Jackie wasn't home so the Doctor sent Rose to sleep and settled in to wait. He knew that he could have spent the time with Rose, searching her mind to see if there was some way to avoid a brain wipe, but he wanted to be a little more composed when he talked with Jackie.

"Rose? Doctor?"

"I'm in here, Jackie. Rose is asleep," the Doctor replied, standing up.

"You two, always running about, no wonder she's tired. How 'bout you then? Do you want a coffee?"

"No, thanks though," the Doctor said. "Jackie, I need to talk to you about something serious."

She moved over near him and sat down. "What's wrong?"

"There's no easy way to say this. Jackie, Rose was attacked mentally. She's not hurt, not like you're thinking. Go check on her if you want to. She's not going to wake up until the morning," the Doctor said. "But this attack, it was done in such a way that it's changed her, and there's no way that I can change her back."

"Tell me what happened."

"There was a great war between my people and an alien race called the daleks. The Last Great Time War. One of our leaders, the founder of our people had a plan. He could eliminate the daleks and save my people, but at a cost that was too high to pay. The end of the universe and everything in it," the Doctor said. "All of creation gone to save one race. I couldn't let that happen, Jackie. Not the universe. Not the people who lived there. So I stopped him. I destroyed my own people and the daleks to save the universe. I thought it was worth it, to know that there would be no more daleks to hurt people." He paused for a deep breath. "But I was wrong. The daleks survived, Jackie. They managed to survive and breed and they've come back. Rose stopped them last time, but I can still sense a few of them out there."

Jackie put a hand over his. "You made an impossible choice, Doctor. Isn't that what you always do?"

"It gets worse. One of the other Time Lords escaped from the lock, the prison if you will, that stops anyone who can travel in time from going back to that moment and stopping me," the Doctor said. "The founder of my people escaped and started to hunt me down. He managed to get into Rose's mind, Jackie, and did horrible things to her. I don't think I can reverse them. I don't think I can save her again."

"Doctor."

"Hit me, yell at me, do whatever you want. You'll never blame me as much as I blame myself, Jackie."

"Doctor, you sound like the old you. The first time we met," Jackie said. "Is Rose going to die?"

"No."

"Is she brain dead?"

"No. Jackie, no. You don't understand. This form of mental rape is subtle. It gets into your heard and puts ideas there that can never be removed. There aren't many time lords who would have been able to do it. I would even have trouble with this level of control, but that's partly because I don't want to control others." The Doctor took a deep breath. "I never told you or Rose about him, but I have a life partner. He doesn't travel with me right now because he's working on a project that will take a few more centuries to develop, but I visit him whenever I can. This time lord got into Rose's head and put the idea there that she needed to kill my life partner to be able to be with me for all time. Rose is still human. She will still age and die, just like she would had she never traveled with me. She's already made one attempt on his life, not even realizing what she was doing. Neither of us blame her for it, and we're both fine, but it means you have to make a choice now."

"Me?"

"I'm going to go in and bury all the memories of me deeply inside of her brain. It'll be like I erased them completely," the Doctor said. "They'll be sealed away tightly and nothing will ever be able to activate them again. Rose will be the same as she was before we met, Jackie. None of this will hurt her. She'll feel a little empty inside, because she will have lost something very important, but this needs to be done. She's a danger to herself right now, and I can't let any more harm come to her."

"All right, let me see if I understand this all," Jackie said. "Rose's mind has been hurt by a bad guy from your planet and she's tried to kill the man you love. In order to protect her, you're going to erase yourself from her mind and vanish completely."

"Yes."

"Isn't this the easy way out?" Jackie asked.

"No, no, Jackie, it isn't. This is the hardest way possible to deal with this situation. I love your daughter, she's my best friend. I would love nothing more than to be able to keep her with me," the Doctor said. "But my life partner is, well, he's my hearts. I have killed to keep him safe. Losing Rose is going to tear a hole in my hearts big enough that it'll feel like they've stopped. I'll never be able to see her again, never talk to her. Never hear her laugh, see that smile that shines like the sun when she's happy. But you'll still have all of that. If I don't do this, then it's possible Rose may try something to get to my life partner and end up dying in the process. I can't let that happen to her."

Jackie took a deep breath. "What's the choice I have to make? It sounds like your mind is made up."

"Do you want me to do the same to you?" the Doctor asked.

"No. No, I want to be able to remember everything," Jackie replied. "So that when Rose is sad, I'll be able to understand why."

"You understand that you can never tell her this secret. Never even hint at it."

"But you said that nothing would make her remember."

"Do you want to take that risk?" the Doctor asked. "Jackie, you're strong. You raised Rose after Pete died and look at how strong and independent she is. She takes after you. But after I bury all these memories, erase myself from her life, Rose will go on and continue to grow. Anything that could make her remember me could be enough to send her into psychic trauma, maybe even kill her. And I know you don't want to do that."

"I don't. What should I do, Doctor?"

"You should hate me, not be asking me for advice. I'm the one who caused all of this."

"No, no you're not. This person from your planet is the one who attacked Rose. You're trying to save her. Just like you always do. I know you love her, in whatever way you can," Jackie said. "Oh, maybe it's better you do it to the both of us. That way I won't have to worry about letting something slip up."

"Are you sure?"

"No, but I think it's for the best."

The Doctor nodded and took her hand. "You're a strong woman, Jackie Tyler. Rose is lucky to have you."

"What do we do now?"

"Let me put you to sleep, it's like hypnotizing you, and I'll take care of you first because you'll be the easier of the two of you," the Doctor said. "Then I'll work with Rose. You'll both wake up in the morning and everything will be back to normal again."

"No, it won't be, because you won't be in our lives," Jackie said. "Oh, Doctor, what about Mickey? How are you going to explain that?"

"I don't know. I'll think of something. Mickey is doing battle against some of the most evil beings in our universe. I won't have Rose thinking he ran away on her. You'll both remember the same thing, Jackie. Life will go on."

"Doctor, will you promise me you'll always keep the Earth safe?"

"Oh, Jackie, that's an easy promise to make. I will always keep the Earth safe. Humans are beings of hope, Jackie, and that's one emotion that can never be allowed to die out in the universe."


	15. Baker Street 4

One of Mycroft's cars dropped Sherlock off at Baker Street. Normally he would have refused the help from his brother, if only on principle, but he wanted to get home and make sure that John was safe. He'd made one phone call while being driven across London. He had plans to make, but to do that, he needed data. Mycroft was going to be next to useless, having been tied up by his mysterious superiors, so Sherlock would have to rely on the next best source for information.

"John?"

The flat was empty, but neat. Sherlock could tell that someone, maybe John, but more likely Mrs. Hudson had taken advantage of his absence and cleaned up. His chemistry equipment was even clean, none of his experiments were left in the kitchen and he knew that if he looked in the fridge, the human remains would be gone. Not that it really mattered, he would always be able to recreate the experiments once Moriarty was taken care of.

"Sherlock, is that you?"

"Yes, Mrs. Hudson. Have you seen John?"

"Oh, not since early this morning. He's been spending time with such a nice young man. They met at the hospital when John was doing some fill-in work, and became fast friends. I think they had plans to go see a show and have dinner tonight," she said. "We thought you were still in France. How was your holiday?"

"Dull. Mrs. Hudson, Mycroft brought me home because Moriarty is getting ready to make his final move. Do you have any idea where John and his friend were planning to go tonight?"

"No, I'm sorry Sherlock, but I only know about this because I overheard Richard, that's the friend's name, mention something to John about seeing a wonderful show."

"Thank you," Sherlock said. "Oh, Mrs. Hudson, do you happen to know his last name?"

"Brook, Richard Brook. He works as a story-teller. John says that the kids just love him."

"I'm sure they do. Lestrade is on his way over, would you let him in when he rings?"

"Only for you, Sherlock." Mrs. Hudson smiled and bustled out of the flat.

Sherlock dug for his laptop, cursing in fairly fluent Gallifreyan when he couldn't find it immediately, and called his brother while it was booting up. "John's gone, Mycroft."

"What do you mean, gone?"

"I mean he's not here. Mrs. Hudson was just telling me that he's out on a date of some sort with a man he met at the hospital," Sherlock said. "What do you know about a man named Richard Brook?"

Mycroft sighed. "Absolutely nothing, Sherlock, but I'll see what I can locate for you. You do realize that it is possible that John's just out for a pleasant evening and will be home before you know the time has passed?"

"John's straight, Mycroft. He takes a great deal of pleasure in pointing that out at every opportunity," Sherlock said.

"Well then, you have to remember that he knows what Moriarty looks like. I find it highly doubtful that he's out doing anything with your main nemesis."

"Mycroft, you went into John's mind and buried information. How do you know that his memories of Moriarty weren't damaged in the process? You said it yourself, he didn't seem like himself when you came to call." Sherlock hit the computer trying to make it run faster.

"Sherlock, don't break your laptop and don't use the sonic screwdriver on it either," Mycroft said. "We'll find John. I'll alert my operatives and you have your homeless network. Let us not panic until everyone is fully accounted for."

"Damn it, Mycroft."

"Sherlock, I'll see that the Doctor locks you in the TARDIS if you don't calm down and start thinking rationally. I know you're worried for John, but blind panic is not going to help him any. Research this man that he's been spending time with. Ask Lestrade for his help whenever he arrives, and I'll see what I can find here." Mycroft sighed. "The Doctor is going to need you, Sherlock. You need to remember that as well."

"I know, Mycroft," Sherlock said. "He's heart-broken at having to leave Rose behind. I won't let any of this bleed over onto him, but we have to find John."

"We will, Sherlock. We will."

Sherlock put his phone down next to him on the sofa and pulled up google. He really wasn't fond of the search engine, but knew that it would give him the broadest line of results in the shortest amount of time.

"Sherlock?"

"Up here, Lestrade."

Lestrade closed the door behind him and put his hands on his hips. "You sounded like it was the end of the world or something on the phone, you know. What's going on?"

"Moriarty."

"Oh, bloody hell." Lestrade sank down next to Sherlock on the sofa and rubbed his face. "He's not blowing things up again, is he? I had the worst time convincing my superiors that it was one man who caused all those deaths and destruction. If not for your brother, I'd probably still be in meetings. What's he done now?"

"Mycroft had Moriarty in custody and was questioning him. Once he learned what he needed to know, he let Moriarty go," Sherlock said. "The biggest threat was to me, and those around me. That means you, Mrs. Hudson, Molly and John. I've managed to account for everyone and get them safe, except for John. I need your help."

"Isn't he out with Richard tonight?"

Sherlock stared at Lestrade. "You've met him?"

"Yeah, came round to the pub with John one night. Seems a nice enough bloke. Really enjoys his work, always on the lookout for new stories. He said he was translating a set for his next DVD."

"Where were the stories from?" Sherlock asked.

"Russia, I think he said. Somewhere in that part of the world, anyway," Lestrade replied. "It's weird, I always thought John was straight, but I guess it just takes the right person to disprove the rule."

"Now what are you on about?"

"Never thought I'd see the day when I knew something you didn't, Sherlock. I caught them in the loo at the pub. Lucky I didn't arrest them for public indecency or something. John looked pretty happy. But, then again, I would have been too if I had a guy doing that to me."

Sherlock looked up from his laptop. "Do not be vulgar, Lestrade. What else do you know about this Brook man?"

"Sherlock, just because you don't approve of or like sex, it doesn't mean the rest of us feel that way you know," Lestrade said.

"Lestrade, if you stay long enough this evening, you have a fair chance of meeting my boyfriend. Do not go off topic. What do you know about Brook?"

"Uhm, he's put out a bunch of DVDs, is really popular for kids' events, likes hanging out and talking with people," Lestrade said. "You know, hang on a second, I might have a picture of him on my phone."

"Lestrade, I've seen you struggle to turn your phone back on after a court appearance. Do not ask me to believe that you've worked out the photo function."

"I had some help, I'll admit, but Sally thought it was cute too."

"Oh, give me that." Sherlock grabbed the phone and started through the menu options, searching for the picture in question. "Really, Lestrade, am I going to have to sit you down and teach you how to use this thing?"

"Not after what happened when you tried to teach me to use my DVD player, no. Now, Sherlock, how long have you been hiding this boyfriend from the rest of us? I've never heard you mention him before."

"He travels a lot and is rarely around, so I don't talk about him," Sherlock said. "You've seen him a couple of times, back when we first met. He would have been wearing a light jumper and leather jacket with black jeans and boots."

Lestrade thought for a minute. "Oh, yeah, I do recall him. Never saw his face though. Does Mycroft know about him?" He waited for a minute. "Sherlock?"

"Lestrade, you are not to leave my side until I tell you it's safe. I don't care what you hear, see, or need to do. We're going to take Mrs. Hudson to pick up Molly and take them both to Mycroft," Sherlock said. "Then we'll figure out what to do next."

"Sherlock, what's wrong? What's going on?"

Sherlock turned the phone towards Lestrade, showing a picture of John with a dark-haired man, both of them smiling at the camera. "That's Jim Moriarty."


	16. Diogenes Club

Mrs. Hudson wasn't too happy to be bundled out of her home so abruptly, but when Lestrade explained that they needed to take her somewhere they could be sure she was going to be safe for the night, and that they needed her help, she settled down and went willingly enough. Sherlock had called Mycroft back and asked for a car so they could be sure of the driver and get everyone to Mycroft's office building safely. Once they had picked up Molly, they were delivered to the Diogenes Club and the women were turned over to Anthea for the night. Lestrade tailed Sherlock through the building to the strangers' room where Mycroft was waiting for them.

"Can you think of anyone else who may be in danger tonight, Sherlock?" Mycroft asked in lieu of a greeting. "Detective Inspector, would you care for a drink?"

"I've put out word with the homeless network, they'll be safe enough," Sherlock replied. "Lestrade will have brandy, Mycroft. How are we going to find John and Moriarty?"

"Inspector?"

"Yeah, brandy's fine," Lestrade replied with a shrug.

"While I believe that the Doctor would be our best resource in this search, he's still working with Rose and her mother," Mycroft said. He handed Lestrade a glass and moved to sit in his favorite chair. "What about sending John a text?"

"I thought of that, but didn't want to make any move until I was sure everyone else was safe," Sherlock replied. "I sent one off while we were walking up here. John never turns his phone off, so he'll get it."

"The question becomes, who will reply. Perhaps I should send a text as well, to let John know that this is rather important," Mycroft said.

"Wait a second here, guys. I've met Richard, or Moriarty, whoever the hell he is and he seems nice. Didn't send out any signals that worried me in the least, and you know that I'm pretty good at reading people," Lestrade said.

Mycroft smiled tightly. "Yes, well, you haven't had much practice in reading dangerous psychopathic madmen, now have you?"

"I dunno, I work with Sherlock."

"I've told you repeatedly, Lestrade, I'm a high functioning sociopath. Honestly, does no one do research these days?" Sherlock asked. "Mycroft, I think if you send a text as well, and Moriarty gets it, he might hurt John faster than he's planning to. My text can be read as an 'I'm home from my trip' message from a flatmate. Though Moriarty is smart enough to read between lines that aren't even there."

"Well, I feel that I am at least partly to blame for this," Mycroft sighed. "I knew I should have made time to go back and check on John, but tensions growing in the Middle East took all of my attention. One of us shall have to check him over once he's home again, Sherlock."

"Mycroft, what are you talking about?" Lestrade asked.

"I'm afraid John took an instant and almost illogical dislike to Sherlock's lover. Things were said that should not have been said, and Sherlock left the country before they could talk things over again," Mycroft said. "I noticed there was something not right with John when I visited to ask him about a man I was investigating, but didn't have a chance to return to check up on him. Humans in pain can make some of the most illogical choices."

Sherlock's phone beeping interrupted any reply Lestrade could have made. "It's Moriarty," Sherlock said.

"How do you know it's not John?" Lestrade asked.

"Because John would never text me this." Sherlock handed over his phone.

The King up in his Tower sat  
All alone save for his Fool  
And one lone, ragged silver cat  
The hordes quested for his Jewel

"What the hell does that mean?" Lestrade asked, passing the phone to Mycroft.

"Moriarty is the king, John is the fool," Sherlock replied. "You're the cat, for some reason, Lestrade, and Mycroft and I are the hordes after the jewel."

"But the question is, what's the jewel? We have the code, thanks to the Doctor. What else could Moriarty have been hiding?"

"Oh, stupid!" Sherlock hit his forehead. "I'm the fool and John's the jewel. You and the Doctor must be the hordes, Mycroft. Moriarty never saw me when he was being questioned. He only saw the two of you. So that means he wouldn't have me associated with the attackers. I'm the fool who has to go and join them."

"And you're sure the cat is me?" Lestrade asked.

"Your hair is a rather obvious clue, Detective Inspector," Mycroft replied. "Though I must say that it does look quite distinguished."

Sherlock almost growled. "Flirt later, Mycroft. We have to figure out where Moriarty is, where he wants me to come and meet him."

"The obvious, of course, is the Tower of London," Mycroft said, ignoring Sherlock's outburst about flirting. "Yet I doubt that he's going to be so obvious. What other towers do we have within reasonable distance?"

"There is also the White Tower, but again, that's connected with the Tower of London and thus obvious." Sherlock stood and started pacing. 

"BT Tower, Tower 42, Broadgate Tower, Heron Tower, Euston Tower, Cromwell Tower, Lauderdale Tower, Shakespeare Tower, Millbank Tower, Aviva Tower, King's Reach Tower."

"King's Reach, that links back to king," Lestrade interrupted Mycroft's recital of buildings.

Sherlock shook his head. "None of those make any sense. Moriarty would have chosen a building that has some sort of meaning to the three of us; John, me, and him. We've never had any sort of connection to any of those buildings."

"The crown jewels are in the Tower of London. You don't think he's going to go after them, do you?"

"Doubtful, but I'll alert the guard just to be safe. Please excuse me for a moment."

Lestrade watched Mycroft leave and then rounded on Sherlock. "Okay, genius, what the hell did you mean when you said he was flirting with me?"

"Later, Lestrade. I need more data." He twisted his phone around in his hand a few times and then opened up the reply feature. "I'll write back and see if he'll send me more. He loves puzzles, you know that. Maybe if I play along with him he'll give me what I need."

"That's dangerous," Lestrade said. "Why can't we just track down John's phone?"

"He had the tracking feature disabled after I used it to find him on a date one night," Sherlock replied. "I needed his help with an experiment."

"Sherlock."

"Save it, I already had my lecture from him. There, let's see what Moriarty makes of that."

"Okay then, if you won't tell me about Mycroft, tell me who this doctor person is you keep referencing."

"That'd be me."

Lestrade looked over and saw a man about equal in height to Sherlock with crazy brown hair and almost insane brown eyes. "What's going on?" he asked.

"Doctor," Sherlock said. He crossed the room and pulled his lover into a hug. "Are they okay?"

"They're sleeping. The old girl will watch them for a day or two and let me know if anything goes wrong. Now, who is this rather fine looking man?" the Doctor asked.

"This is Detective Inspector Greg Lestrade of New Scotland Yard," Sherlock replied. "He's the detective I work with the most on cases. Lestrade, this is my lover, the Doctor."

"Doctor Who?"

"Just Doctor, thanks," the Doctor said. "Yeah, I know, it's unusual, but no one can ever know my real name. Besides, I like how it sounds. Doctor. It just rolls off the tongue, yeah?"

Sherlock smiled. "Of course it does, Doctor. We have a problem. Moriarty has John."

"Tell me everything."

"Excuse me a moment, Lestrade," Sherlock said. He leaned in and pressed his forehead against his lover's, letting the Doctor see all of the information gathered so far. "We're waiting on the second text."

"If we get one. Someone, who shall remain nameless, Mycroft, is a touch out of practice," the Doctor said. 

"Quite. The Tower guard has been alerted and will remain on alert until I contact them again. What is your next move, Sherlock?"

"I need a text," Sherlock said. "I need Moriarty to give me more information. Mycroft, why don't you explain things to Lestrade? He looks rather confused."

Lestrade drained the last of his brandy and set the glass down on the table. "I'm just not sure what's going on here, but with the government, I've learned not to ask questions. I'll just sit here until you need me."

Sherlock's phone beeped and he almost dropped it in his haste to get to the message.

To protect his jewel the king would Die  
Defy the hordes until the last  
All his faith in the Saints he lie  
Until the danger at last was past.

"That's a stretch," the Doctor said. "It should be lay not lie, unless of course he's lying to you."

"I know where he is," Sherlock said. 

"Where?" Mycroft asked.

"St. Bart's Hospital," Sherlock replied. "I know, there's no tower involved with the hospital, but it's where he and I first met, where he and John met for the second time, and where I spend a great deal of my free time. It's the only logical answer."

"So what now?" the Doctor asked softly.

Sherlock smiled. "I go and get John back."


	17. Bart's Roof

John looked around, taking in the view of the area at night. He'd been to Bart's at night, but never up on the roof before. "What are we doing here, Rich?" he asked. "I thought we were going to see a play."

"We are," Richard replied. He stepped up behind John and wrapped him in a hug. "John, I want you to know how special these two weeks have been for me. Spending time with you, learning everything there is to know about you, has been wonderful."

"Sounds like you're trying to break up with me or something," John said. He turned in the hug so he was facing the man who had become his first boyfriend. "Rich, what's wrong?"

"I really don't want to do this, John. I don't. I wish there was another way to end this evening, but I can't think of one." He leaned in and kissed John softly. "I think I might actually be sorry for the first time in my life."

"Rich, what's wrong? Talk to me and I'll help you figure it out." John flinched when handcuffs clicked around one of his wrists. "What's going on?"

Richard smiled. "I've wanted to see what you look like restrained since our first night together," he said softly. He twisted John's arm around behind his back and secured him to a railing. "You're just as beautiful as I thought you would be. Now, John, will you answer a question for me?"

"Of course."

"Why don't you know who I really am?"

"What do you mean, Rich? I know who you are."

"No you don't. We've met before, met before I bumped into you in the hallway. I wasn't sure what to think when you didn't recognize me and I've been trying to figure it out," Richard said. He stepped back and ran a hand through his hair. "I'm going to have to change into something more suitable for the evening. I hope you don't mind."

"I'm not too keen on being restrained like this," John said. "Why didn't you try this on a bed? I wouldn't have minded so much then."

"I wish I had known you like kinky sex, John. We could have had so much more fun than we did. But you're right, in a way. I do have to break up with you. Not because I want to or anything, but because of Sherlock. You see, he hates me and wants me dead."

John blinked a few times. "Why would Sherlock hate you, Rich? He's never even met you before."

"But Sherlock hates anyone who takes you away from him, doesn't he? Isn't that why he's always interrupting your dates and calling you away from your job?" Richard asked. He let his jumper and shirt drop to the roof and pulled a dress shirt out of a bag that had been stashed away in a corner. "John, I don't know how you managed to forget me. I wish I knew the secret because then I could make everyone forget me and I could vanish forever."

"Rich, what are you talking about?"

"Sherlock's going to come and find us, you know," Richard said. "I've already replied back to one of his texts to whet his interest a little. Oh, I bet he's frantic looking for you. Too bad I don't have control over the CCTV network, I would so love to see him freaking out over your disappearance." Suit pants replaced jeans and dress shoes replaced sneakers.

"I'm still not sure what's going on," John said, trying to keep the rising panic he felt out of his voice. He had to go into soldier mode. "When did you get a text from Sherlock?"

"I didn't. You did." He held up a phone. "I took it out of your pocket when you kissed me earlier today. Sherlock's going to work out where we are and then he's going to come and get you." Richard pulled on a suit jacket and started to fix his hair. "I thought about killing you, but I can't. Spending time with you like I have, I think it made you more real in my mind and I can't kill you now. Later, maybe, but I want to have you with me for as long as I possibly can."

"Rich, this isn't funny. Let me go, now," John said.

Richard straightened up, a foreign look on his face. "I'm not Richard Brook, John. At least, not anymore. Not for a long time," he said.

"Then who are you?"

"I'm Jim Moriarty. Hi~"


	18. Bart's Roof 2

John stared at the man in front of him. "No, you're not. You can't be. I know what Jim Moriarty looks like, he kidnapped me and tried to kill me to get to Sherlock," he said. "You're not him, Rich. You can't be."

"Sure I can, because I am," Jim said. He slid his hands into his pockets and smiled. "You're such a mystery, John. When I saw you for the first time in the hospital, I thought for sure that you were going to attack me, try to restrain me again and get in touch with those idiots at the Yard. When you didn't, when you just smiled at me, I realized there was something going on that I didn't know about, something more to the world than I realized and I wanted to know more. I want the answers, John, and keeping you here like this is the only way I'm going to get them. Isn't that right, Sherlock?"

Sherlock stepped out from behind one of the large brink chimneys and smiled. "Where are your snipers, Jim? I don't believe that you are here all alone, not for something as important as this," he said. "John."

"Sherlock, what is going on?" John demanded.

"More than I can tell you about right now," Sherlock said. "It would seem that Mycroft is more out of practice than he wants to admit to. Tell me something, Jim, why here? Why this place of all the buildings in London? People here know you, you worked here. Didn't you think it would be dangerous to come back here like this?"

"Oh, but Sherlock, aren't you the one who says that people walk around and see only what they want to?" Jim asked with a smile. He sat down close to John and leaned forward, arms resting on his knees. "No one ever linked Jim from IT with Jim the mad bomber, except you, so it was perfectly safe to come back in here as Richard. I just told anyone who asked that I was Jim's twin brother, and he was out of the country on holiday. It worked so well, I wish I had thought of it sooner."

Sherlock sighed. "You know that I'm going to have to kill you, don't you, Jim?" he asked. "Your master is dead, you need to go with him and we'll end this hold you have over us for good."

"I don't know what you're talking about, Sherlock, I have no master," Jim replied. "I do what I want when I want and with whomever I want to. How do you think John is going to feel if you kill me? He's spent the past two weeks in my bed, Sherlock. Aren't I lucky? To be the first man ever to touch the famous John Watson. Are you jealous?"

"Not at all," Sherlock said airily. "John's free to sleep with anyone he wants to, I don't have any prior claim to him, other than as my blogger and friend."

"Then why do you always interrupt his dates, Sherlock? Why are you always tearing him away from anyone he wants to get close to?" Jim smiled. "Is it because you can't stand the thought of him admiring anyone other than you? Is that it? Do you crave attention that much?"

"No," Sherlock said. "None of those women are good enough for him. I'm simply trying to save him time."

"Yeah, I think I can make my own choices, thanks, Sherlock," John said. "And, if anyone cares, my hands are going numb. I don't suppose one of you could unlock these cuffs, could you?"

"Doctor?" Sherlock said, not looking away from Jim.

There was a high-pitched buzzing noise and the cuffs fell to the roof. John rubbed his wrists and sat down next to Moriarty. "You're not killing him, Sherlock," he said. "I don't know what's going on, but I know Jim Moriarty, and Rich isn't him."

"John, you're not thinking clearly," Sherlock said. "Just like any other human when they're in love, you think you can change him? Jim is not sane. I don't know how badly his mind is damaged, but he's a murderer. He killed that elderly blind woman simply because she was going to tell me what he sounded like. You berated me for hours on the deaths in that building, how I didn't care about them when I should, and now you're sitting next to their killer and saying he's not guilty of anything?"

Jim laughed and put an arm around John's shoulder. "You should never underestimate love, Sherlock," he said. "Just because you prefer to be alone doesn't mean we all do."

The Doctor stepped out of the shadows and smiled. "Hullo again, Jim. Good to see you, are you sure I can't call you Jimmy?"

"What are you doing here?" Jim asked. 

"Oh, you know, just passing through, saw a bunch of people up on a roof, wanted to make sure no one was going to kill themselves," the Doctor said with a smile. "Thought I might offer you a banana if you were hungry."

"You can leave, I don't want or need you here," Jim said. "You give me a headache."

"Do I? Brilliant," the Doctor said. He handed a banana to Sherlock and took another one out of his pocket. "Anyone else hungry? Bananas are good, you know."

"Sherlock, what is he doing here?" John asked.

"The Doctor and I spent the early part of the evening talking with Sebastian Moran," Sherlock replied. "He had some very interesting things to say, including a few about how he was the power behind Moriarty and the web of spies and intelligence he maintains. We had to kill him, in the end, but not for the reasons you seem to be thinking. He wasn't a human, he was a, well, not a monster. What would you call him, Doctor?"

"Power-hungry and delusional," the Doctor said. "He always has been, for as long as I've known him, but it's gotten worse over the years. I don't suppose we have to worry about him anymore, not unless I missed something, and I don't think I did. Still, it's something to watch for. Jimmy here is our last link to him. I hate guns, hate violence, but his mind is too dark to be allowed to live. Who are you planning to kill next, Jimmy-boy? Me or Sherlock?"

"I told you not to call me Jimmy."

"Did you? Sorry, busy life, I tend to forget things," the Doctor said. "Sherlock, you have a red dot on your forehead."

"His snipers are showing their hand," Sherlock said. "I figured I would be the target. Not that it will work this time, Jim. Now, tell John the truth and don't leave anything out."

"I don't have to, John knows the truth," Jim said. "Oh, at the beginning I thought maybe I would be able to kill him when the time came, but I spent too much time with him. He's become real. I've never had anyone do that before." He caught John's hand in his and held it tightly. "I would never be able to hurt him now."

"Killing me would hurt him," Sherlock pointed out. There was a whistle and a bullet pinged onto the rooftop. "Not that you'll be able to kill me, but the point still stands."

Jim stood up and walked over to Sherlock slowly, John trailing slightly behind him. "How did you do that?" he asked. "You should be dead."

"The Doctor and I have a few tricks up our sleeves," Sherlock said. "John, you have to see what's in front of you. You're in danger as long as you stay with him."

"You said it yourself, Sherlock, I like danger," John said. "I won't let you kill him. This is, I don't understand anything you're saying, any of you, but Rich wouldn't hurt me."

"John, please," Sherlock said, holding out a hand.

"No. Come on, Rich, we need to go now before they try and hurt you," John said. He pulled on the other man's hand. "Come on."

Jim turned to John and pulled him into a hug. "I can't," he whispered. "John, I mean it when I say these last weeks with you have been wonderful. You've shown me things that I've never been able to see before, and I'll never forget that. I think that you're the one who was meant to be real to me. The only person on this planet who could be real to me. Thank you for that."

"Rich, what are you talking about?" John asked.

"I can't leave with you. The pressure is getting to be too much, I can feel it building up behind my eyes. It's been building steadily for years, but it's worse since that man over there touched me." Jim kissed John softly and whispered in his ear, too quiet for a human to overhear, but the Time Lords on the roof had much better hearing. "I would take you with me, but you're right; I can't hurt you. Not physically. I wish I didn't have to hurt you at all."

"Rich, no," John said. He tried to pull his boyfriend back away from the edge of the building. "Don't do this. The pressure in your head, I know a doctor who can help you. It's a medical problem, not worth ending your life for. Please, don't do this. Don't leave me here alone, not after everything you've taught me."

Jim looked back at Sherlock and the Doctor. "You're the ones who brought us to this point," he said. "Make sure John doesn't follow me. I don't want him dead. You seem to not be able to die. I wonder if I'm the same?"

The Doctor and Sherlock moved forward at the same time, Sherlock grabbing John around the waist and the Doctor trying to catch Moriarty's hands. He closed his eyes when he missed and turned back to the roof. "Mycroft is there," he said softly.

"Let me go. Sherlock, let me go," John shouted, twisting and writhing, trying to break free of the grip around his waist. "Don't touch me. You killed him. You killed Rich. Let me go."

"Doctor?"

The Doctor caught John's head in his hands. "Sleep, John Watson," he said. "Just sleep, no dreams. Not now. Not until we can figure out what's going on in your head."


	19. TARDIS 3

Sherlock was in the console room of the TARDIS, waiting for the Doctor to finish his check on John when the door opened. "Well?" he asked.

"Molly will take care of things for us," Mycroft replied. "I must admit, Sherlock, that was not one of the outcomes I foresaw for this evening. Moriarty did not seem the type to take his own life."

"Are we sure he's dead?" Sherlock asked.

"What the hell?"

"Lestrade," Sherlock said. "Mycroft?"

"Yes, well, I had to tell him a few things," Mycroft said, looking at the tip of his umbrella. "He'll keep our secret, Sherlock. I checked Moriarty before leaving him with Molly, though events with John have proved that I am, indeed, out of practice. There was no activity in his brain. I am sure of that much."

"I should take a look at him to be sure," the Doctor said, joining the group. "John's asleep, Sherlock. There's nothing physically wrong with his brain, nothing that I can fix. I think that whatever Mycroft did when he was altering John's memories of me and what I said to him, it created a few new neural nets and those can't be altered."

"So John will hate me when he wakes up," Sherlock sighed. "We have no video footage of the events at the pool, thanks to Moriarty's love of bombs, and nothing from his time with us underground." He sank into the jumpseat. "I think, brother, that I'll travel for a time. Allow John a chance to forget me."

"It's not like you to run away from things, Sherlock," Lestrade said.

"Oh, hullo Detective Inspector, didn't see you there, welcome to my ship," the Doctor said with a grin. "Don't touch anything and you'll be fine. Mycroft, I think that you should take Moriarty and burn him like you did Moran. That's the only way we can be sure he's really gone."

"Now wait a minute, Doctor, we can't just burn a body," Lestrade said. "What about his family?"

"He doesn't have any left, he killed them all before he moved to England," the Doctor said. "The other option is for me to take him with me and take care of him once I find a suitable planet."

"I'll take care of him, thank you though, Doctor," Mycroft said. "Sherlock, are you sure you want to leave things the way they are with John? You don't want to talk to him before you leave?"

Sherlock shook his head. "I'll travel for a while, see what's new out there and then come back," he said. "You didn't hear John up on the roof, Mycroft. He doesn't need to see me right now, not when he's hurting so badly. Perhaps Lestrade can talk to him, or you, Mycroft. He doesn't know the two of you were around for the events of the evening."

"If you're sure, Sherlock," Mycroft said.

"I am."

"Very well. Doctor, will you take me to John? We'll get him semi-mobile and take him back to Baker Street," Mycroft said. "The both of you are to keep in touch."

"I'll be in the pool," Sherlock said, vanishing into the depths of the TARDIS.

The Doctor sighed. "He'll come around, and we can always come back, Mycroft," he said. "We won't be gone long at all, not if I have my say in anything. Come on, medical bay is down here."  
***********

"Where did you find a float?" the Doctor asked, staring at his lover once they were back in the time vortex. Mycroft had promised to keep a close eye on John until they returned to Earth.

"The TARDIS made it for me," Sherlock replied. "Are you going to come join me?"

"I dunno, the view from here is really nice," the Doctor grinned. He started to take off his suit. "Sherlock, I promised Mycroft that no matter how long we're gone, we'd come back within two weeks of today. I just wanted you to know that. He wasn't going to let us go if I didn't agree to that."

Sherlock snorted. "He always has thought he knows what's best for me," he said. "John was very definite in his wishes up on the roof. I don't see how returning early will change that."

"It won't, but you should at least try to talk with him," the Doctor said. He dove into the pool and swam out to the rubber float Sherlock was on. "I know John's your first human friend in at least a century. Living on the slow path really isn't my style, but I know what it's like. I've done it."

"Yes, I recall. Those were very interesting days, weren't they?" Sherlock grinned. "I had thought that John had more faith in me than he showed today. I know that love causes humans to act irrationally, but I don't understand how he could choose Moriarty like that. It's illogical."

"It's very human though," the Doctor pointed out. "He loved the man he knew as Richard, and we both know that Jim Moriarty was an outstanding actor. Without the previous knowledge of Moriarty to color John's feelings towards Richard, it's not surprising that John felt loyalty to the man he loved."

"How can anyone fall so deeply in love in two weeks?" Sherlock asked. "How do we know that Moriarty didn't have help from Moran to tie John to him? You said yourself that Moran was a very powerful, skilled Time Lord. Is it possible that he did something you couldn't find?"

"Yeah, of course it's possible, but I don't think he did," the Doctor said. "I think that John had been repressing feelings for you, not really understanding how he could be attracted to another man and my arrival just brought those feelings and emotions to the surface. Moriarty, as Richard, would have been smart, suave, and caring. Everything John had been hoping you would be for him. That could make him fall very fast, very hard and be very loyal. I didn't see anything in his mind that showed it was interfered with beyond what Mycroft did."

Sherlock looked over at his lover. "They say love is blind. I never understood that saying, not until today."

"You love who you love," the Doctor said. "John might have projected his feelings for you onto Richard, but I think they morphed into real feelings for him, in the end. I just want to make sure that you don't lose your friend, Sherlock. We're Time Lords, we lose people far too easily far too soon. I don't want to see you just throw this away, Sherlock. I think that John's worth fighting for, in the end. No matter how he feels about me."

The sound of a phone ringing stopped Sherlock from replying. "Hello?" the Doctor called.

"Ah, Doctor, why do you sound like you're in a cave?" Mycroft asked.

"I wired my phone into the TARDIS so I wouldn't have to carry it around with me," the Doctor said. "We just left, Mycroft. What's going on now?"

"I fear I have some rather disturbing news," Mycroft sighed. "John's gone, and so is Moriarty."

"What do you mean, Moriarty is gone?" Sherlock demanded.

"I mean that after we left John at Baker Street, he was seen going back to Bart's and then both he and Moriarty have vanished completely," Mycroft said. "Molly was knocked out, nothing beyond a simple injection but she's being monitored for the night to ensure there are no ill side-effects from the drug. She's not lucid, but says that it was Moriarty who gave her the injection."

"So he survived the fall," Sherlock said. "This must have been his plan all along."

The Doctor sighed. "Impressive, for a human," he said. "Mycroft, I think that you either need to get some practice in your telepathic abilities or just quit all together. This is the second time we've relied on you and you haven't been correct."

"I did ask you to look at him, Doctor. It's hardly my fault you chose to believe what I told you," Mycroft said. "Can you both come back and help with the search?"

The lovers looked at each other. "We'll check on a few things and join you," the Doctor finally said. "We'll be in touch, Mycroft."

"What are you planning, Doctor?" Sherlock asked.

"Why don't we go back and see where they go?" the Doctor grinned. "If we don't stop them, let events play out as they already have, well, it's not interfering in a time line, just observing. I think that's allowed."

Sherlock laughed. "Bending the rules, just like always." He kissed his lover and rolled over, landing in the water with a splash. "Why not? It's not like there's anyone who can object to it?"

"There is, we just won't tell him," the Doctor grinned. "Allons-y!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> http://www.amazon.com/The-Nightmare-ebook/dp/B00AZLLEMW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1357862075&sr=8-1&keywords=Lexxie+Scott
> 
>  
> 
> I just published my first original novella. If you like my fan fiction, please take a look. :-)


	20. Barts 1

The TARDIS materialized with a grumpy hum that said she wasn't happy to be back where she had been, even if there was distance between them. The Doctor patted her console. "I know, old girl, I know, but we need to be sure we don't miss anything and this is the only way to do it," he said. "Right, Sherlock, I've timed this to put us on the ground before Moriarty jumps off the roof, so we can follow along and watch everything that happens."

"I'm rather curious as to how he managed to survive the fall from the roof," Sherlock said. "Do you think it possible he took some sort of drug that was kicking in before he jumped and would relax him enough to survive as long as there wasn't extensive skull damage."

"It was dark up there, it's possible he had on a helmet of some sort that would protect his head from the fall," the Doctor said. "Come on, we can go out, we just have to be careful not to be seen. Humans always seem to be coming up with new things to keep themselves safe, it's possible that old Jim had come up with a way to protect his head and we weren't able to see it in the dark."

Sherlock followed the Doctor out onto the dark street. "We have to stay away from Mycroft. He'll be able to sense us," he said. "It might be possible to get a look at the body before John shows back up and they both vanish. Molly would have to be distracted, but she's not in the morgue constantly."

"If you get your chance, take it," the Doctor said. "This isn't a fixed point, Sherlock. We can rewrite it if you want to, to keep John safe."

"How?" Sherlock asked softly. He ducked behind some trees and motioned for his lover to join him. "This is a good vantage point and Mycroft is far enough off that he won't sense us here."

"We could kill Moriarty," the Doctor replied. "He's supposed to be dead, but no, that's probably what he wants to have happen. I'm not entirely sure he doesn't know more about me than he's letting on. My hatred of weapons and death is well known. I don't want to kill anyone unless there's no other choice in the matter. I'll think about it, there has to be a way to rewrite time here so John doesn't go off with a serial killer."

"There he is," Sherlock said, head tilted up towards the roof of the building across from them. "About to jump."

"Any way we can get into the morgue without being seen by Mycroft or his people?" the Doctor asked. "We don't need to know how he survived so much as we need to know where he took John and trying to stop that."

"There's an entrance on the other side of the building," Sherlock replied. "Come on, this way." He led the way along the street and crossed only when he was sure he was completely out of range of any of Mycroft's people. "I would imagine we'll be able to find out the how when he's in the morgue. Doctor, does it seem like we're missing something with all of this?"

"There's so much going on it's hard to say," the Doctor said. "Crossing a time line like this is tricky enough without trying to change a part of it. I doubt that Mycroft is going to be too happy when he finds out what we're doing."

Sherlock snorted. "Just remind him that he's been planet bound for over a hundred years and you've been out traveling," he said. "Through here. Mycroft may well be older than both of us, but he's never been one for traveling."

"Just how well do you know this building, Sherlock?" the Doctor asked, looking around.

"Extremely well," Sherlock replied with a smile. "Here, we can hide in here and no one will be the wiser."

The Doctor followed Sherlock into the closet and shut the door behind them. "So we need to wait until Mycroft leaves and then all we have to worry about is the young girl that works here, and John later on," he said. "I can't think of another option to deal with Moriarty, Sherlock. Even if he were to survive the night here, there's enough evidence for Mycroft to have him executed for his crimes. Plus he's a serial killer."

"Which is likely why he's running," Sherlock sighed. "I don't have your hatred of weapons, Doctor. I could happily kill Moriarty for what he's done."

"I hear someone coming," the Doctor said. "Let's see what we can learn."


	21. Barts 2

"What happened?" Molly asked as Mycroft led the way into the morgue, four of his people carrying Moriarty's body. "Oh my god, Jim."

"He fell off the roof," Mycroft replied. "I believe that this is your division, Ms. Hooper. I am sorry for your loss."

"Yeah, okay, thank you, I just need a minute," Molly said, heading towards the back of the morgue. "You can put him on any table. I'll just be right back."

Mycroft sighed and looked at his men. "You may go," he said. "Tell Detective Inspector Lestrade where I am, should he ask. I'll just be a moment." He rested his umbrella against the table and looked around. "I know you're there, Sherlock, which is interesting as you should still be on the roof."

"We doubled back and jumped into the timeline," the Doctor said, walking out of the closet first. "Because we made a mistake and Jimmy here is still alive, and he takes John with him. We want to stop that happening."

"Yes, well, an understandable ambition," Mycroft said. "I was about to check to ensure that he is dead, but if you're here, Doctor, then I'll leave you to it and go explain a few things to Lestrade. I take it you don't want me to mention this when I see you both in the TARDIS later?"

"Avoiding a paradox would be wonderful," the Doctor said. "Don't want to blow up the universe, you know."

"Quite," Mycroft said. "If you can sort this, then I would be most grateful. Just watch out for Molly."

"She's calling in another medical examiner," Sherlock said. "We only have to worry about her coming in to say good-bye. If you could keep John away until morning, brother, it would be ever so helpful."

Mycroft nodded. "I believe I can do that easily enough," he said. "Be careful, the both of you. I'm not overly happy to find you in the wrong timeline."

"It's to save an innocent life," the Doctor said.

"Yes, which is why I'm not lecturing you," Mycroft said. "Doctor, if you find you cannot solve this problem without killing Moriarty, do let me know. I have several ways with which I can take care of him for good."

"You had your chance, Mycroft," the Doctor said. "I'll figure something out, even if it's abandoning my morals and letting Sherlock shoot him."

"Good, good, well, it sounds as if you have everything well in hand," Mycroft said. "I'll just be off then. See you both in the right timeline later on."

Sherlock looked at his lover. "He delights in making things more complicated," he said. "What do you think?"

"He's still alive," the Doctor said. "I don't know how, but he's in there. Brain activity is slow but present and his vitals are starting back up again. I think he's going to wake up within the hour unless we do something."

"Why don't we keep him unconscious and take him up into the wilds of Switzerland?" Sherlock asked.

"Why Switzerland?" the Doctor asked, taking the syringe from Sherlock and injecting the fluid into Moriarty's veins.

"Don't you recall those ridiculous books I allowed Conan Doyle to write about me back in the late 1800s?" Sherlock asked, helping to move the body out of the room and into the hall. "When he grew tired of writing them, he killed the detective at the falls there. It does seem rather silly, but a second fall there wouldn't be too suspicious, especially if he was wounded prior to the fall."

The Doctor nodded. "I'm against needless death, Sherlock. Always have been, always will be, but this one, he's dark. The darkness in his mind is spreading and it's too dangerous to let him live," he said. "I think your idea is the best we're going to have. All right, let's get going. I don't trust Mycroft to keep John away, and I don't want him involved in this."


	22. The Wilds

Moriarty woke up, not in the morgue at Barts like he'd been expecting, but tied securely to a tree surrounded by mist and with a strange roaring sound in the background. He shook his head to clear it and groaned.

"Hullo Jimmy," the Doctor said with a wide grin. "Welcome back to the world of the living. That was a good trick, that was, jumping off a building a surviving to tell us how you did it."

"What are you doing here?" Moriarty asked. "Why won't you just leave me alone?"

"Because you're messing with my friends," the Doctor replied seriously. "I take friendship very seriously, you know, and messing with friends of mine is one way to be sure that I always show back up. Especially if you hurt my friends. So, I have a guess at how you survived, but I'd love to hear you tell me if I'm right or not."

"I'm not telling you anything. Where am I?"

"The falls of Reichenbach," Sherlock said from behind him. "I find it interesting that you chose the name of the man that Conan Doyle used as the arch-enemy of Sherlock Holmes in the early stories. Yes, I've done some investigating, Richard, and found out the truth. It's a sad truth, but the truth none the less."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Moriarty said.

Sherlock moved around and sat on a stone near Moriarty, but still at a safe distance away from the man. "You became interested in the Sherlock Holmes stories when you were six," he started, "having heard some upperclassmen talking about them. You quickly became obsessed with what you saw as the injustice done against Professor James Moriarty in the stories, even though he only appears in person in one story, a story where he is quickly eliminated at the falls of Reichenbach."

"Your father did the rest," the Doctor said softly. "Every time he beat you or your mother, you would retreat into your mind, forming an alternate persona, that of James Moriarty. You killed your father before you came over to England, but by then your mind was split roughly fifty-fifty between Richard and James."

"Richard is the artistic one," Sherlock said. "The story-teller who delights in translating new stories to tell to children. The one who could and does love John Watson. James, or rather Jim, is the serial killer, the one who is slowly overtaking the brain and is in control most of the time. When you saw my name in print for the first time, you decided it was fate and you would kill me in revenge for the Professor."

"Very clever, Sherlock," Moriarty said with a smile. "I would have managed it too, if Rich hadn't fallen in love. Some of that bled over, you know. I can feel what he feels, and he can feel what I feel, and I've never felt love before. I didn't know what it was until he met John at the hospital. You two are the first to figure me out. Why do you have the same name as Conan Doyle's detective, Sherlock?"

"My mother was a fan," Sherlock replied. "Too much of one, and both my brother and I suffered for it. You know far too well how mean children can be to anyone who is different."

"We were fated to meet, you know," Moriarty said. "It's too bad that it has to end this way, again, but I suppose it's for the best. I'd come out and hurt John, and I wasn't lying to him when I said he's more real to me than anyone else has ever been before. You won't tell him about all of this, will you?"

"He suspects," the Doctor said. "He'll never forget you."

Moriarty shook his head. "He'll never forget Richard," he said. "So what happens now?"

"You have a choice," the Doctor said. "You can go to your death here at the falls, just like the Professor did in the stories, or you can go to an isolated place where you'll be alone for the rest of your life, with food and water, but no humans around. You'll live in isolation until your natural death comes to you."

"I think I like that idea," Moriarty said. "Being alone, it would drive me crazy, but I'm already mad by human standards, aren't I?"

"You are," Sherlock said. "Now choose."

"Isolation," Moriarty said. "Jumping off the roof made me realize I'm not ready to die just yet."

The Doctor nodded. "All right then," he said. "We'll have to knock you out until you get there."

"Of course, it's the only smart thing to do," Moriarty said.  
***

"Where are we leaving him?" Sherlock asked once they had Moriarty secure near the door of the TARDIS and were in flight.

"Nice little planet I know," the Doctor replied. "We'll go early enough in the planet's history that a single human won't make a bit of difference to the development of the local species and leave him there. Fresh water, food and materials to make fire, even though it's temperate year round. He won't die of exposure or ailment."

"Somehow I almost feel sorry for him," Sherlock said softly.

"I know," the Doctor said. "I do too. No one should have that sort of a life growing up. All right, there we are. Let's take him out, make sure he'll stay asleep for a few more hours and leave him be. I hope he lives a long life here, I really do."

Sherlock picked Moriarty up and followed the Doctor out into a grassy clearing. "This is pleasant," he said. "Yes, he'll do well here. Were he less intelligent, I'd worry about leaving him with no tools, but he'll be able to create his own easily."

"Let's leave him near the caves there," the Doctor said. "Then all we have to do is go back and show John that you're not a monster."

"I wish that was going to be as easy as this turned out to be," Sherlock said. He untied the last knot and bundled up the ropes. "At least we know that John is safe now."


	23. Baker Street 5

"Let me go in alone," Sherlock said. "He's not going to react well to seeing me and seeing both of us might do more damage than anything would be able to undo."

The Doctor nodded and sat down on the steps that led up to John's bedroom. "I'll stay here unless I hear sounds of a physical altercation. No fighting, not when I'm here," he said.

"I'll do my best," Sherlock said. He took a deep breath and pushed the door open. "John."

"What are you doing here?" John asked in a monotone, not looking away from the fireplace.

"I wanted to tell you what I've found out," Sherlock replied. "Richard was real, John, and he did love you. You were right, there was a medical condition, one that could have been treated should it have been found earlier, but it was too late. Moriarty was taking over more and more frequently."

"He was sick, Sherlock, he needed help. Why didn't you just leave and let me help him?"

Sherlock sighed. "Because Moriarty was in control and everything he'd been doing when he was in command of the body was leading up to a showdown with me," he said. "Richard read Conan Doyle's books and fixed on the Professor. When he saw my name in the papers, he decided it was fate and he would kill me in revenge for what happened in the stories, or he would die trying."

"How do you know all of this?" John asked.

"Research in government records," Sherlock replied. "John, I understand you don't want me here. I'll gather up a few things and travel for a time. Just don't lock yourself away for good. You have people around who care about you and will want to help you recover from your loss."

"They wouldn't even let me in to see the body," John said. "Mycroft had him locked away and Molly said no one was going to be allowed in to see him."

"That might be for the best," Sherlock said. "Your memories of him won't have blood in them, John. Hold onto those memories because you deserve the happiness they bring you. Had I thought there was anything to be done, I would have stopped him. Even if it had cost me my life."

"He wouldn't have killed you."

"Richard wouldn't have, no, but that was Moriarty in control up there," Sherlock sighed. "You saw the sniper shot, John. You may not have registered it, but if not for a trick of the Doctor's, I wouldn't be here right now. You would have lost me instead of your lover." He held up a hand. "I know what your automatic response to that is, but please, take time to think things through logically when the pain dulls down. I'll leave you be. Should you wish to see me again, tell Mycroft. He'll be able to get in touch with me."

Sherlock shut the door quietly behind him and sighed. "Doctor?"

"I think it would be a good idea for Mycroft to keep an eye on him," the Doctor said. "Just to be safe."

"John is one of the strongest men I know, but even the strongest can break," Sherlock said, starting down the stairs. "Let me speak with Mrs. Hudson on the subject of the rent and then we can go. Mycroft will pay it for as long as John wants to remain here."

"Then what?"

"Is the offer to travel with you still good?"

"Of course it is," the Doctor said. "We'll go out and enjoy time and space for a while. It's not like Mycroft can't get in touch if he needs us for anything, and the break will do you good. I think having you here would be too painful for John right now."

Sherlock nodded. "A reminder of that which he lost," he said with a sigh.

"Yeah. I'm ready when you are, Sherlock."


	24. Baker Street 6

Sherlock slammed the door to the TARDIS behind them and leaned against it while the Doctor worked the console. "You never mentioned how much time you spend running, Doctor," he said, trying to catch his breath.

"Yeah, running is important," the Doctor said. He looked up with a grin. "Still, we made it, the rebellion survived and the evil king is dead. Ten years from now a new government will be in control of the planet and everyone will be happier. That's worth a little running, isn't it?"

"I suppose, yes," Sherlock said. He moved to join his lover at the console and kissed him. "Could we pop back to Earth and see how John is doing, Doctor?"

"It's been a year, Sherlock, he's going to have a lot of questions for you," the Doctor said. "Probably starting with where have you been all this time? What are you going to tell him?" He started to put in the coordinates for Earth.

"I wish I knew," Sherlock said. "I suppose it's possible that he still hates me and I don't stand a chance of ever getting him back as a friend. I'll think of something when I see how he's doing. I find it rather odd that Mycroft hasn't rung through to tell us anything."

The Doctor nodded and threw the switch to land the TARDIS. "Yeah, that is a bit odd, isn't it?" he asked. "There you go, Earth, roughly a year later. I've got us parked in the park so you'll have a short walk to get to your flat."

"Aren't you coming along?"

"I didn't want to presume."

"Since when?"

"Since always," the Doctor said, shutting the door behind them. "I may poke my nose into everyone business, but I don't do it with my family, Sherlock. I know how much John means to you."

"I just hope that he is willing to forgive me," Sherlock said softly. "He went through so much trauma because of me and I wasn't able to help him recover from it. I feel bad about that, Doctor."

"I know you do," the Doctor said softly. "Isn't that Mrs. Hudson?"

"Sherlock!"

"Yes," Sherlock said. "Mrs. Hudson, how have you been?"

She hugged him tightly. "Oh, as good as I can be, love," she said. "I've been wondering when you would be back. So much traveling all of a sudden, do I have your young man to blame for that?"

"We've been seeing remote parts of the world," Sherlock said. "It's been amazing, Mrs. Hudson, but I wanted to come back and see John. How has he been?"

"Oh, Sherlock, I don't know how to tell you this, but he's not here," Mrs. Hudson said. "John's been gone about six months now. He said London reminded him too much of Rich and he was going to try and make a fresh start somewhere else. Just packed his things and left, not even a note for you. I am sorry, Sherlock, I know how close the two of you are."

"I half expected this," Sherlock admitted. "Come along, Doctor, let's go up and contact my brother. That is, of course, unless you've rented the flat, Mrs. Hudson."

"No dear, your brother's been paying the rent for you, so it's just as you left it," Mrs. Hudson said. "I'm sure Mycroft will be glad to hear that you're back. Will you be staying?"

"For a few weeks, yes," Sherlock said. "Beyond that, I don't know."


	25. Chapter 25

"Sherlock, Doctor, welcome back," Mycroft said, not looking up from the papers on his desk. "How is all of time and space? Still functioning, I presume?"

"For the moment," the Doctor said. "You know you'd be welcome to come along too, Mycroft."

"Thank you, no, I have far too much going on here to think of leaving any time soon," Mycroft said. He finally looked up at his younger brother. "John is in San Francisco, Sherlock. It wasn't easy to track him across the states, but I picked him up again when he started working in a hospital there."

"What was his mindset before he left?" Sherlock asked.

"Depressed, but not dangerously so," Mycroft replied. "He obviously mourned Richard Brook, the first man he loved, and spent enough time on Bart's roof to worry me for a time that he was going to try and jump. He never did, just sat there and stared off into the distance."

Sherlock sighed. "Would it have been better for me to have remained behind, do you think, Mycroft?" he asked. "I worried that seeing me would be bad for John and left to allow him time to grieve."

"It's hard to say," Mycroft said. "Certainly the time immediately after Moriarty, or Brook, jumped off the roof would have been a dangerous time for John had you remained. I never picked up on any obvious desire to speak with you, but should you have been around, it's possible that he might have sought you out."

"It's never easy to know what to do in cases like that," the Doctor added. "Even as a Time Lord, you can't second guess yourself on this one, Sherlock. We were able to rewrite time once for this, to save John's life. I don't dare try and skip back a second time."

"No, I wouldn't ask you to, even if it were possible," Sherlock said. "Last time was to save John's life. I think, no matter how much I hate the idea, I have to allow him his choices and make my own. Brother, I'm going to travel with the Doctor. I've grown weary of humans and their petty minds."

Mycroft leaned back in his chair. "I saw this coming years ago, Sherlock," he said. "The two of you are good together, you'll be a force for good in a universe that badly needs one. Just promise me that you'll stop in every so often so I know the pair of you are safe."

"Sure we will, Mycroft," the Doctor said. "Can't really keep me away from London. I love it here, so many things to see and do, we'll be back, probably more often than you want us to be, really."

"Thank you for not trying to hold me here, brother," Sherlock said. "Maybe in another year or so I'll want to go see John and see how he's doing, but for now, I think I just want to leave. This is why I dislike human entanglements so much. Too much emotion involved."

"Emotions can be a good thing, Sherlock," the Doctor said. "Don't go sounding like the daleks there. Mycroft, I'll keep him safe."

"I know you will, Doctor," Mycroft said. "Because you know what I'll do should you not."

Sherlock stood. "I'll clean out the flat in Baker Street, Mycroft," he said. "Do you have space at the house for my books?"

"Of course, Sherlock," Mycroft said. "I'll stop by this evening with some movers and we can get everything taken care of. Also, Sherlock, if you wished to write a letter to John, I would see it delivered for you."

"I'll think about it," Sherlock said.


	26. Chapter 26

When John found a letter with a UK postmark in his mail box one morning close into Christmas, he almost tossed it without reading whatever was inside. He didn't. He took it inside and put it on his desk and looked at it every morning for a week, trying to figure out who the letter was from. John hadn't known that anyone in England knew where he was, although, when he thought about it, he wasn't too surprised to work out that Mycroft likely had him tracked and knew everything down to what he was having for breakfast. Finally, after a week of staring at the envelope, John opened it and found Sherlock's familiar handwriting staring back at him.

 

John,  
Mycroft promises that this letter will find you. I returned, roughly a year after Richard's death, and found you'd left England for a new life elsewhere. Some place where the pain doesn't radiate through you nearly as much as it does in London. Yes, Mycroft told me where you are, but I decided not to come and see you as you need to be happy, and seeing reminders of that which you lost is not a good way to ensure your happiness. Mycroft is not watching you, he wanted to know where you were so he would be able to tell me should I wish to visit. You're not being watched in your new home.  
I've left England as well. I'm traveling with the Doctor, something I haven't done in years. We have another person traveling with us, her name is Martha, and she's about to take her final exams to be a doctor. I think, should you have met her, you would have liked her a great deal. I wish I could tell you more about our travels, but you wouldn't believe me. No one does until they see it for themselves, and I don't think that would be a good thing for you right now.   
John, I've spoken with a few specialists about Richard's case and have included their reports for you to read if you wish. There are also a few pictures of him that Mycroft was able to find. I don't know if you even want them or not, but thought I would give you the option, seeing as you likely would have nothing with which to remember him by. He has no grave in London. I am sorry for that, but Mycroft feels that it's better this way and would not budge on the point. No child deserved what happened to Richard and I do feel bad that help came, for him, too late. I know you likely won't believe me when I say that, but it is the truth. I wish there was a way that you could have had happiness, John, but Moriarty was taking over more and more. I won't rehash arguments, but know that there were two men inside that head, one sweet and in love, one a serial killer. I think you realized that on your own, even if you can't admit it to yourself.  
I don't know when, or even if I shall return from my travels with the Doctor. You are my first true friend, John, and I do mean that with everything I am. I hate that I lost you for something as human as love, but I do understand. Take care of yourself, John. Be happy and live. I know that it might be impossible, but work towards it. If not for me, than for Richard. I think he would want you to be happy.  
Should you ever wish to contact me, send word to Mycroft. He knows where to find me.  
Sherlock Holmes

P.S. I let the flat in Baker Street go. Things that you left behind, either by accident or on purpose are with Mycroft should you want them. Letters to this address will find him. SH


End file.
